Ryan Lomberg fell just shy of a Gordie Howe hat trick on Saturday night, missing out on registering an assist.

But we’re sure if you ask any of the announced 18,256 fans at the Saddledome, they probably weren’t bothered all that much by him falling short of that feat in a 6-3 Calgary Flames home victory over the Vegas Golden Knights.

The fourth-line spark-plug had an eventful first period shift, officially listed at 23 seconds in length, that featured a goal on a two-on-none rush sequence and a pretty spirited fight with Vegas blueliner Jeremy Lauzon.

Let’s break it down, shall we?

Lomberg came onto the ice at 15:26 into the first period with the score at 2-1 Flames, with his line starting to cycle on in replacement of Mikael Backlund’s line. Lomberg jumped on in relief of Blake Coleman after the Flames had cleared their zone, but Vegas maintained puck possession and carried the puck back into the Flames’ end.

Some defensive stickwork by MacKenzie Weegar and Yan Kuznetsov led to an errant Vegas pass into the slot that was intercepted by John Beecher. Seeing the possession change, Lomberg and Connor Zary start moving up ice towards the neutral zone. Beecher, recognizing that Zary and Lomberg seemed to have a step on Vegas’ pivoting defenders, threw a pass to Zary and moved them up ice.

Suddenly, Zary and Lomberg had a two-man breakaway. Zary passed the puck to Lomberg, who beat Vegas netminder Akira Schmid stick-side to give the Flames a 3-1 lead at 15:45 of the first period.

From hitting the ice to putting the puck into the Vegas net, Lomberg had been on the ice for roughly 19 seconds.

Before we get into the next sequence, we’ll flash back to 13:50 into the first period, when Lauzon crunched Matt Coronato along the boards. The Flames took some issue with the level of physicality on that hit, and Lomberg in particular took note.

So following Lomberg’s goal, the Golden Knights changed up their skaters and Lauzon came onto the ice at the same time as Lomberg on the next face-off.

“So he hit Matty pretty good a couple of shifts before, and I was planning on going and asking him,” said Lomberg, following the game. “And it just kind of worked out that I scored before I got the chance to ask him, and then I asked him right after, and he said yes. Obviously, in his position, they’re down 3-1. It was a good opportunity for them, and for me, just sticking up to one of the boys.”

Lomberg and Lauzon both dropped their gloves after the face-off, at 15:49 into the first period, but Lomberg was toppled to the ice immediately as he and Lauzon engaged – before either had even thrown a punch, truth be told. Lauzon, and the officials, to their credit, allowed Lomberg to get back to his feet and have a proper bout rather than end things prematurely.

“Well, he’s a big boy. He kind of pushed me over, lost my balance there,” said Lomberg. “And, you know, I asked him to let me up, and he did. It’s, you know, nobody wants to see that, right? So I think he was more than happy to let me up and continue the fight.”

You can go to HockeyFights.com and let us know who you thought got the better of the fight. The bout was Lomberg’s fourth of the season and his goal was his second of the season.

The Flames also received goals from Mikael Backlund (twice), Adam Klapka, Joel Farabee and Jonathan Huberdeau, while Devin Cooley made 34 saves for his fourth victory of the season. The Flames improved to 9-5-2 on home ice, and allowed them to continue some momentum as they attempt to catch teams in front of them and claw their way into the playoff pack.

“Yeah, it was great,” said Lomberg. “I mean, winning is always fun. Felt like the ‘Dome was extra special today, so it was great. Big win for us. We’re looking forward to keep it going.”

The Flames conclude their pre-Christmas schedule on Tuesday night when they visit the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place.

This article is a presentation of Platinum Mitsubishi, family owned and operated by lifelong Calgarians. Home of the industry-leading 10-year, 160,000-kilometre powertrain warranty. Check out their showroom at 2720 Barlow Trail NE or online at www.mitsu.ca.