Post-Game: Defensive play optional in exhibition tilt with Sharks

Pre-season hockey isn’t often picturesque. It’s usually something to be endured rather than enjoyed. The Calgary Flames’ contest against the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday night at the Saddledome was one of these games. The Flames won ugly, prevailing 6-4 in a fairly clunky 60 minutes of exhibition hockey.

The game started poorly for the locals, as Jon Gillies allowed a goal on the first shot he faced: a wrister from the high slot through traffic from Lean Bergmann that made it 1-0 Sharks.

The Flames responded a little bit later off a nice play. Sean Monahan won a defensive zone face-off and everyone bolted into the neutral zone. A few nice passes later and Monahan finished things off with a tap-in past Antoine Bibeau to make it 1-1.

A nice individual effort a bit later on from Alan Quine gave the Flames their first lead of the evening. Michael Stone intercepted a clunky Sharks clearing attempt and after the puck bounced around a bit, Quine settled it down and put it past Bibeau to make it 2-1.

Shots were 6-6 in the first period.

The Sharks tied it up midway through the second period, as a wrister from Ivan Chekhovich eluded Gillies (with little traffic) to make it 2-2. But the Flames responded quickly, as Martin Pospisil sprung Adam Ruzicka with a nice pass inside the Sharks blueline. A backhander from Ruzicka beat Bibeau to make it 3-2 Flames.

Right after, Derek Ryan’s pass to the slot was deflected past Bibeau by Tomas Hertl to make it 4-2 for the home side.

But a little later, a Sharks point shot rebounded off Gillies’ pads right to Evan Wiederer for a tap-in to cut the lead to 4-3. The Flames responded quickly, though. Byron Froese found Dillon Dube in the slot with a nice pass, and Dube calmly deked around Bibeau to make it 5-3 Flames.

But the Sharks got that one back, as Weiderer made a nice individual effort to deke through a few Flames defenders and his low shot squeaked through Gillies to make it 5-4. Shots were 12-9 Sharks in the second.

The Flames scored an empty-netter – credited to Johnny Gaudreau after a Shark swept it into the open net – to make this one finish 6-4 for the home side.

The Flames definitely dressed a better lineup than the Sharks did, but they were the benefactors of getting contributions from up and down their lineup. Aside from the early clunker against Gillies, the Flames never trailed in this one and seemed to have enough oomph in their lineup to always manage to get the “next goal” and maintain serve in this one.

It wasn’t a pretty game and their defensive play – and goaltending – was fairly porous, but it was good enough for a win in a game that meant literally zilch.

Let’s go with hometown boy Dube, who was noticeable almost every time he hit the ice (for positive reasons). Other players standing out positively included Alan Quine and Rasmus Andersson.

All four Flames lines scored goals, with the goals scored by each line’s center. Spooky.

Gillies’ four goals against was the most allowed by any Flames netminder so far this pre-season.

The Flames are back on the practice ice tomorrow. They’re back in exhibition action on Friday night when they head up to Edmonton to face the Oilers.