If you asked somebody who only occasionally watched the Calgary Flames to describe a prototypical Flames win, that description may have involved a low-event game, some big Dustin Wolf saves, and been decided by a game-winning goal where nobody was quite sure who scored.

Well, that’s precisely what unfolded on Monday night when the Flames managed to win ugly in a slog of a hockey game against the visiting Boston Bruins.

Following the game, Flames head coach Ryan Huska offered up his assessment of his team’s 2-1 overtime win.

“It was one of those games where you have to find a way to win, and we did that,” said Huska. “You know, it wasn’t the prettiest… But you have to find ways to win those games. And earlier in the season, we weren’t winning games like that. So, I think finding a way to stick with it and getting two points is a really big thing for us tonight. Penalty kill was good. The struggles that our power play had, at the end of the day it scored the goal, so that’s an important thing for us.”

The Flames put up just 20 shots on goal in the game – tied for their fourth-lowest output of the season – and they were credited with just a single shot on Boston netminder Jeremy Swayman in the third period. Their line shuffles – swapping Connor Zary and Matt Coronato between lines – didn’t really seem to result in much of an offensive boost, though Huska himself acknowledged that it was a tight-checking hockey game. Their power play went 0-for-4 in regulation, generating just two shots on goal in the process.

Their overtime triumph came on the heels of a pair of big shorthanded stops by Dustin Wolf at one end of the ice, followed by the game-winner at the other end. Heck, the player credited with the game-winning goal in overtime – a rebound off a Yegor Sharangovich shot that appeared to ricochet off Swayman, off Zary’s foot, off Bruins defender Hampus Lindholm’s stick and through Swayman’s pads and into the net – wasn’t even on either power play unit during the preceding three periods. And in keeping with the oddness of the evening, the credit for the goal swapped between Zary and Sharangovich several times following the game (eventually landing with Zary).

The Bruins are a team on a cold streak, with the loss running their current skid to six consecutive games (0-4-2) and seven of their last eight (1-5-2). The Flames were that team over their first 13 outings, and they seem to be getting the breaks now, running their current hot streak to four wins in their last five games, five in their last seven, and a 10-2-1 home record since Nov. 2.

Earlier this season, the Flames were a group that found ways to lose. Lately, they’ve been finding ways to win, and these wins have them inching closer and closer – improbably – to a playoff spot.

The Flames are back in action on Wednesday night when they host the Philadelphia Flyers.

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.