The Calgary Flames got some beautiful goals from Matt Coronato to help propel them to a 3-2 overtime victory over the Montreal Canadiens.

It’s a Team Game – The first period was the Dustin Wolf show. Calgary did not have a great stretch of team play but Wolf was there to stop everything. He looked cool, calm, and collected all night long. The Flames came out from the start of the second period on and really started to outwork Montreal all over the ice. They started getting some actual shots through traffic and getting better transitioning through the neutral zone. Defensive lapses on special teams kept things close, but eventually Matt Coronato would create some space to allow himself to utilize his top notch shot. Once off the wall to tie things up and once off the rush 7 seconds into overnight. The road trip is kicked off with a feel-good win.

Corsi King – When Ryan Huska sends people messages, they do tend to get received. Martin Pospisil (75.32 CF%) is the latest guy on watch and he responded with some energy. He can plug into a fourth line identity in his sleep so there’s no harm in him being on that line – especially if it frees up more ice time for Coronato (56.40 per cent). The other guy that was helpful in firing the puck all over the place was Andrei Kuzmenko (73.06%). These guys are trying to find some things in their games to celebrate without producing and taking a lot of shot attempts is a great place to start. Being in a position to have a 75% attempt ratio is even better – It means the job on the defensive side is (largely) being done.

Taken By Chance – Anthony Mantha (57.93 SCF% || 100 HDCF%) had himself an amazing start back in Quebec but he suffered an injury and only got into 4:58 of 5v5 action. He had helped be involved in 4 high danger looks for the Flames in that time. I liked goal scorer Connor Zary’s (49.94 per cent || 73.56 per cent) line where he went shot-for shot in overall scoring chances but had a significant advantage in the offensive zone. All he did on his goal was follow his pass – kept his feet moving instead of standing stationary. Too often when things are going bad you see guys being static in their movement.

xGF% – Daniil Miromanov (66.96 per cent) seemed to be in the offensive zone every single shift. He had a real goal ratio of 2-0 in this one and was out for 39 overall shot attempts. His partner being the rock that is MacKenzie Weegar (62.86 per cent) certainly plays a factor, but Miromanov was quite noticeable in this game. He hasn’t been using his mobility like he was last season, although his defensive positioning has improved immensely. Almost forgot to mention that Mikael Backlund (48.21 per cent) may have some lower ratios from some first period struggles, but in the clutch he came up big.

In The Crease – I was ready to sign Wolf to an 8-year deal after the first period. He got absolutely shelled – and by some quality chances in tight too – with absolutely nothing getting through the steel wall. His goals against tonight consist of one where 3 out of 4 Flames skaters committed to the puck battle in the corner on the PK and a 2-on-1 given up because of their joke of a powerplay. He is displaying a consistent level of athleticism most goaltenders are incapable of showcasing and exuding elite confidence in his play. He has been nothing short of elite in every performance this season. 2.36 expected goals against at 5v5 with none getting behind him – the ‘ol 5v5 shutout.