The Calgary Flames began the 2024-25 season by shocking plenty of hockey fans across the landscape. And despite a rough stretch at the end of October and November, they’ve continued to prove everyone wrong, sitting second in the Pacific Division behind only the Vegas Golden Knights.
Of course, it’s only November, meaning there’s still plenty of season left. However, this current Flames team is on a roll, defeating some really strong teams on a four-game homestand to keep them contending at the top of the Western Conference.
Following their defeat of the Minnesota Wild in a shootout — a game in which Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson said post-game that they “should have won in regulation” after being up 3-1 and giving up two goals, including the equalizer in the final minute of regulation — head coach Ryan Huska talked about the team’s success on the homestand (via Flames TV). They didn’t surrender a single point over four games to four teams that play relatively different styles of hockey. Not only did he give credit to his team for being smarter about the hockey they’re playing, but he also gave credit to the Flames faithful for their energy.
“I think we’re not hurting ourselves,” Huska said. “I think we’re playing a much smarter brand of hockey that we’re not creating too many unnecessary opportunities for the opponent. And I think the building has been really good. I think at times when we have been a little bit flat, there’s been some great energy in the building. Whether it’s the beer drinking that’s going on, I’m not sure. But [the fans] have had some really good energy over the last little while, and I think our players have fed off that.”
Home-ice advantage is essential in hockey. Whether it’s the regular season or the playoffs, playing in front of your home fans and taking advantage of a crowd behind you is as vital to success as anything else. The Flames made sure to give their fans their money’s worth in terms of entertaining games and the team’s results. As Huska said, the energy in the Saddledome was a huge contributor to the four-game win streak Calgary finds themselves on.
With a four-game road trip coming up to finish November’s game slate, the Flames are in a much better position than many thought they would be at this point in the season. They came out of the home stand with all eight points. They didn’t make it easy at times, but their resiliency shone through and received contributions from up and down the lineup.
The four games on the road trip are against all Eastern Conference opponents, so there is a different approach than if it was a road trip against all Pacific Division or Western Conference opponents, but every game at this juncture is important. The Flames still have a long road ahead of them if they want to stay in contention for the post-season, and their ability to secure wins at home in front of the “C of Red” (9-3-0 record in Calgary, tied for the most home wins in the conference) will be a major talking point moving forward.
