The Hamilton brothers connected on a goal last night and it was great

Last night, the Calgary Flames were held to a single goal by the Chicago Blackhawks. But on that goal, the second brother pairing to play for the Flames at the same time made some history.

I was shocked that Robyn and Richie Regehr never connected on a goal, too.

Let’s break down how Dougie Hamilton’s 11th goal of the season developed.

Johnny Gaudreau sees Freddie Hamilton uncovered near the slot and prepares for a pass. Freddie begins anticipating the pass and starts to load up for a one-timer.

Freddie unloads his one-timer, but his timing is slightly off and he partially fans on the shot, redirecting it to the other side of the slot instead of at the net. The Blackhawks defenders (and Sean Monahan, preparing to screen Scott Darling) all freeze momentarily.

Dougie Hamilton slides in from the point and is the only player on the ice to follow the puck towards the low side of the slot. He slides in and shoots. Darling, Monahan and the Blackhawks defenders are caught off-guard with the shot and the Flames score.

Traditionally known for how reserved they are, particularly Dougie, the Hamilton Brothers more closely resembled the Marx Brothers with all their zingers after the game.

“I guess he knows me, so I guess he knows I’m gonna fan on it,” joked Freddie after the game. “I wish I could say I tried to do that, but it felt pretty nice. Luckily he put it in. Good read by him.”

The younger Hamilton brother noted that he didn’t have his brother scouted, but was prepared for a chance nonetheless.

“Yeah, I don’t know, I was just hoping that it was coming over and it ended up pretty much working perfect,” shared Dougie. “I would probably rather he score there, but it was pretty nice.”

Freddie shared that he realized it was Dougie taking the shot right away.

“I think when he got the puck, I knew it was him,” said Freddie. “Just a bigger guy, right-handed shot. It felt awesome. I guess it was a big goal to tie up the game, but it would’ve felt nicer with a win.”

As teammates with the Niagara IceDogs for three seasons and at the 2012 World Juniors with Team Canada, Dougie and Freddie were on the scoresheet together many, many times. The goal against Chicago was their first chance to connect on a goal in the NHL in their four games together, though they’ve had a few opportunities.

“We’ve got some chances in the last couple games and Freddie couldn’t score,” joked Dougie. “Glad it worked out the other way.”

Sports is notorious for “big fish” stories. Will the Hamilton brothers make Freddie’s pass more picturesque when they tell the story in the future?

“I don’t know. I think it’s pretty obvious, but we’ll say that,” deadpanned Freddie.

The goal set a new career-high for Dougie in a single season, topping
the 10 goals he scored last season with the Boston Bruins. He’s three
points away from a new career-high in points.

For a team that hasn’t had a ton to celebrate over the past few weeks (or even months), it was probably nice for the players (and the fans) to see a moment like that in a game where the Flames played pretty well.