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Post-Game: Flames sing the blues in St. Louis
Flames lose
Photo credit: Jeff Curry/USA Today Sports
Ryan Pike
Oct 11, 2018, 23:07 EDTUpdated: Oct 11, 2018, 23:25 EDT
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The Calgary Flames had their win streak halted at two games. They suffered a one-sided 5-3 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night at the Enterprise Center.

The Rundown

The good news is the Flames opened the scoring! The bad news is everything that followed. A Dillon Dube forecheck created a turnover. Sam Bennett couldn’t beat Jake Allen, but he fed James Neal for a quick wrist shot that made it 1-0.
The Blues tied things up very quick, as the Flames got caught watching Jordan Kyrou on a zone entry and he was able to feed a wide open Alex Steen to make it 1-1. A little later Rasmus Andersson coughed up the puck due to pressure from Jaden Schwartz, which allowed Brayden Schenn to feed David Perron for a one-timer and a 2-1 lead.
Later in the period Mike Smith made an initial save on Robert Thomas, but he booted out a rebound right to a charging Joel Edmundson and he buried the rebound to make it 3-1. Sean Monahan drew a penalty shot late in the period but hit the post. Shots were 14-8 Blues in the first, chances were 9-5 Blues.
The Blues went up 4-1 in the second period as Smith mishandled a Blues power play dump in, allowing Perron to tap in a pass into a wide-open net. He completed the hat trick off a decent little passing play later in the period to make it 5-1. Shots were 11-10 Flames but chances were 7-6 Blues.
The Flames attempted to make a game of it in the third period as David Rittich game into the net to mop up. Austin Czarnik’s initial scoring chance was stopped, but he fed Derek Ryan for a one-timer from the face-off circle to make it 5-2.
A Mikael Backlund pass went off Bennett’s skate as he drove the net and beat Allen to make it 5-3. Because the hockey gods hate Bennett, Backund got credit for the goal.
But that’s as close as the Flames got. Shots were 15-8 Flames, chances 13-6 Flames.

Why the Flames Lost

Tons of iffy defensive zone play, both at even strength and on the penalty kill. They just couldn’t get organized enough in their own end and they were prone to turnovers. Neither are good things against the Blues.
And Smith wasn’t great at all, allowing five goals and making only 19 shots.

Red Warrior

Let’s give it to Bennett, who was pretty dang good. Backlund was also pretty strong.

The Turning Point

There are two, really:
  • At the end of the first period, down 3-1, the Flames get a penalty shot and a power play. They don’t score on either.
  • In the second period the Flames get an extended two man advantage. They don’t score.
If the Flames hit the scoresheet on either of those moments, it’s a much different game.

The Numbers

(Percentage stats are 5-on-5)
Player
Corsi
For%
OZone
Start%
Game
Score
Giordano
80.0
60.0
1.850
Brodie
75.0
66.7
1.050
Lindholm
69.6
50.0
1.265
Bennett
69.2
14.3
1.475
Backlund
63.0
25.0
1.550
Ryan
55.0
57.1
1.255
Dube
54.6
0.0
0.645
Tkachuk
54.2
75.0
1.100
Czarnik
52.2
75.0
1.150
Peluso
50.0
50.0
0.225
Neal
50.0
14.3
0.750
Andersson
48.0
62.5
-0.225
Hanifin
46.4
11.1
0.225
Frolik
45.5
50.0
-0.200
Gaudreau
44.4
50.0
-0.025
Monahan
44.4
55.6
-0.065
Valimaki
42.3
66.7
-0.475
Stone
41.7
11.1
0.050
Smith
—
—
-1.850
Rittich
—
—
0.800

This and That

The Flames special teams had some tough sledding. Their power play was 0-for-4, while their penalty kill went 4-for-6 (allowing a pair of Perron goals).
Dube got his first NHL point with an assist on Neal’s goal in the first period.

Up Next

The Flames (2-2-0) finish off their road trip on Saturday evening when they visit the Colorado Avalanche.

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