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Beyond the Boxscore: Wolf stands strong early as Flames defeat Sharks in San Jose
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Photo credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Flash Stevens
Feb 27, 2026, 10:00 ESTUpdated: Feb 27, 2026, 10:06 EST
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The Calgary Flames returned from their break refreshed and ready to go, fighting hard to earn a 4-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks.
CF% – 42.59%|| SCF% – 43.02%|| HDCF% – 50.92%|| xGF% – 56.1%
It’s a Team Game – At the end of the first period I genuinely thought we were just waiting for another collapse. Dustin Wolf stood tall and gave his team a shoot to stay in things. Even after falling behind 1-0 Wolf remained on top of things until Nazem Kadri scored his first of the night to even things up. By the time the third period was under way the Flames had found their game and took things over. High danger chances in the third favoured the Flames 6-1. Overall, it was a performance I was genuinely happy to see from them. With all the noise surrounding the team before the trade deadline the guys but their heads down and just played. Love to see it. 
Corsi King – Adam Klapka (70.19%), who should have been an Olympian in my opinion, played well with Martin Pospisil (52.49%) and John Beecher (52.01 per cent). The only defenceman to finish with a positive ratio was the most sheltered one in Zayne Parekh. Being sheltered isn’t a bad thing – him finding a form of decent success between now and the end of the season is the goal there. Loved Zach Whitecloud (47.50 per cent) again as well – still learning towards keeping him at this point. He’s just been too good to really let go with the lack of experience on the blueline. 
Under Pressure – 
Taken By Chance – Joel Hanley (69.25 SCF% // 100 HDCF%) was no Eric Francis’ intermission trade board for the Flames. That makes sense, honestly, with where Calgary is at, any 30+ veteran that gets a decent offer should be on the table. Hanley is a controllable asset being signed the next year as well. His time in Calgary has shown he’s not just some number 7 guy – he can play an effective shutdown role on a nightly basis with no problems. Yan Kuznetsov (33.53 per cent // 25.46 per cent) was on the rough side of things, seeing over 6 high danger chances against. The Sharks top forwards are very skilled and quite creative – holding down the fort against them is no easy task. They did what they could on defence and Wolf did the rest. 
xG Breakdown –
xGF% – Nazem Kadri (62.27%) with the clutch 2 goal performance coming out of the break. Just as reports surface that he wants to be traded now he has a great performance showcasing he’s still clearly got a lot left in the tank. Those weary of the age and his contract have not been watching him play close enough – he’s still the best forward the Flames have on their team. It should not be a light offer simply because he’s 35. This is a top 6, scoring centre with the reputation of not just being a winner, but being a champion. He and Blake Coleman (42.02 per cent) should fetch better returns than average due to their winning pedigree and the likely bidding war that should accompany it. One retention spot left can muddle things, but Calgary could get creative with a third party if they wanted to up the return on either (or both). 
Game Flow –
Game Score –
Shot Heatmap –
In The Crease – Things got easier for him later in the game, but to even have  that shot at the victory he had to stand on his head for a while. The Sharks speed was overwhelming most of the Flames roster the first half of the game and they were making passes to the slot for dangerous deflections and attempts frequently. Calgary eventually started controlling more possession and attacking for longer stretches – minimizing that impact – but it did not change the fact Wolf stood on his head. 2 expected goals against at 5v5, just one getting by him. The hometown man comes out on top. 
The Goals –
Flash’s 3 Stars –
1) Dustin Wolf
2) Nazem Kadri
3) Connor Zary
(Stats compiled from Naturalstattrick.com // Game Score from Hockeystatcards.com // xG and Under Pressure charts from HockeyViz.com // Game Flow and Shot Heatmap from NaturalStatTrick.com)

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