Calgary got on the board early and Dustin Wolf did the rest as the Calgary Flames beat the Utah Mammoth by a score of 2-0.

It’s a Team Game – Personally, I do not think the Flames defended as well as they have been the last 3 weeks. Utah got in tight and crashed the crease all night long, finding passing lanes through the Flames defence with ease. Thanks to Dustin Wolf being back in prime form and a little bit of help from a couple of posts a singular goal 16 seconds into the game was all the Flames would need. Calgary got a fair amount of looks themselves, but for a team that usually gives up 7-9 high danger chances to surrender 15 just isn’t their best work. It’s a team game though (you see what I did there?) and Wolf was all that was needed to secure a second straight victory.

Corsi King – I have not had many reasons to shower Yegor Sharangovich (59.27 CF%) with praise since his first season in Calgary, but after getting the first goal it seemed a fire was lit under him. He was aggressive on the attack and was in the slot trying to make things happen. He’ll never be a physical presence – that’s just not who he is – but if he can find the space to get some good opportunities away, he can still be a 20-goal scorer. The inconsistencies have me hesitant to think he’ll ever hit 30 again, but his goal in this one was the deciding factor. Shout-out to Ryan Lomberg (52.42 per cent) for the spirited scrap. He sat a couple games recently, so making himself a factor on the ice matters. It’s not going to come offensively, so do what you got to do.

Taken By Chance – Rasmus Andersson (60.22 SCF% // 63.51 HDCF%) being sassy about rumours to the media is good stuff, I love it. He’s playing amazing on the offensive side of the puck and has really gotten back to being a true top pair defenceman. According to evolving-hockey amongst all defence that have played over 500 minutes Andersson ranks 27th in terms of offence generated. The other guys around him all have elite players like Connor McDavid or Nathan MacKinnon driving them, Andersson is largely doing this himself. If any team is calling to ask for him the price should, at this point anyways, clearly beat what they got for Noah Hanifin last season. Extension or not – if you want to win the cup this is a premier piece, time to pay up or lose out on the chance to add this kind of talent to a competitive roster.

xGF% – Since we gave Yegor some love earlier let’s give some more to another player we hardly talk about – Kevin Bahl (49.74 per cent). Out here eating huge minutes, playing tremendous defensively, is hardly the ire of a defensive mistake made and does exactly what is asked oof him every single night. We never need to discuss him because he’s hardly giving us a reason to. On a night when no goals were scored for the other guys a little love to the top defensive defenceman on the team is well earned. The Backlund (9.01 per cent) line in their tough minutes against Keller and company did not generate any offence, that is until Zary (14.67 per cent) hit the empty net goal from centre ice. Four high danger chances given up, but in the end no goals so we move no. Would like to see them push a bit more on the offensive side, not sure if that’s in the cards for them every night.

In The Crease – First, second, and third star of the game was Dustin Wolf by a landslide. 15 high danger chances and he stopped them all. Backdoor leaks, breakaways, one timers, and everything in between all stayed out of his net. He’s at 5.8 goals saved above expected in his last two games alone. Without wolf in net the Flames probably don’t gain the 4 points since Thursday in multiple blowouts. If he is truly back to form, he will never let them finish in the bottom of the standings. He’s too athletic and too good at reading plays to stay in slumps for long. Combine that with Calgary’s (usual) quality defensive game – it’s very goaltender friendly – and I do not see the Flames at the bottom. The only thing holding them back is their offence, and there’s no real solution for that on the horizon. It’ll be interesting to monitor.