The Calgary Flames have lost their third straight game by a score of 5-0 and are 1-3-1 in their last five games. For the season, they are 5-3-1.

About six and a half minutes in the first period, Alex Pietrangelo’s shot from the left faceoff dot beat Daniel Vladař, who couldn’t see past the screen ahead of him. There wasn’t much of an opportunity for the Flames netminder to save this and the Flames wingers have to close this down faster.

Early in the second period, Flames’ defenceman (and former Golden Knight) Brayden Pachal attempted a stretch pass to a forward, but the puck was picked off by Jack Eichel. After a drop pass to Mark Stone, the Golden Knights captain ripped it over Vladař’s right shoulder for the 2-0 lead.

The Golden Knights got an early one early in the third, as Cole Schwindt threw a blind pass in front of the net. Somehow, Keegan Kolsesar was all alone in front of the net for the easy deflection to give the Golden Knights a 3-0 lead.

It wasn’t over though, as the Golden Knights added a fourth goal with about six minutes left. A neutral zone turnover and a lack of effort on the backcheck led to a 2 on 1, which Kolesar managed to score his second of the game on.

Not even 20 seconds later, the Golden Knights added a fifth goal, as Nicolas Roy’s shot beat Vladař on a shot he wishes he could have back. While there was a bit of a screen in front of the Flames’ netminder, this was the only goal you could pin on Vladař.

You can win a game being outshot the way the Flames were (36-15) but you cannot win the game with the defensive mistakes the Flames made.

On the first goal, they didn’t close down the shooter, allowing the defenceman to take a shot with a tremendous screen. The second goal wasn’t any better, as it came because of an unforced turnover from an ambitious, albeit risky pass.  On the third goal, Kolesar was all alone in front of the net for an easy deflection. Another defensive lapse on the fourth goal saw a lack of effort on the backcheck and a 2-on-1.

On a surface level, Vladař didn’t have a particularly great game, saving 31 of 36 shots for an .861 save percentage. However, it could’ve been much worse with how badly the Flames were outplayed in this one. Yegor Sharangovich and Connor Zary each get a nod, as they each had three shots in the game.

After the first period, the two teams had six shots a piece with the Golden Knights heading into the first intermission with a 1-0 lead.  The turning point, basically when the Golden Knights took over, is when the Flames failed to take a shot for over 23 minutes, totalling just three in the third period.

Although they lost against the Carolina Hurricanes and Winnipeg Jets, the Flames were in those games until the end. After the first goal in this one, they never really had a shot despite only being down by two through two periods.

The Flames (5-3-1) are back at it on Wednesday night when they visit the Utah Hockey Club in Salt Lake City for the very first time.