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Sorry for the late blog folks...had an above average busy day and I didn’t have as much time as usual to gather my thoughts and notes in order to write very much. Tonight I have a few words regarding the Flames`loss to the Los Angeles Kings last night, in addition to Akim Aliu being called up from the Abbotsford Heat.

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Last night, the Flames were challenged with competing for two points against the reigning Stanley Cup champs and were simply, out muscled. Though their captain showed some life early in the game with an absolute solid effort and beautiful pass to rookie TJ Brodie, the Flames were unable to muster up any other offensive opportunities for the night. The team looked small, soft, and unable to legitimately compete against a much stronger Kings roster.

In addition to not being able to compete with the Kings offensively, the Flames have continued to display a defensive zone coverage which was subpar, by any stretch of the imagination. Joey Macdonald was left to fend for himself far too many times throughout the game and there were just too many chances left to the Kings to capitalize in their own end To make matters worse, Macdonald was run by Kings` Lewis with no reprisal...not something that stood very well with the coach.

Joey MacDonald gave us a great game, but the bottom line is we have to be a grittier team,” said Flames coach Bob Hartley. “It’s as simple as this. We need to be in people’s face. They ran our goalie. There was no consequences to this, and that’s just not acceptable."

Calgary Herald

As such, the Calgary Flames have recalled tough guy Akim Aliu to hopefully add some grit to their line. 6'3 225lbs Aliu is no stranger to the gritty side of things and has been waiting for his call all year. The young forward has 5 goals and 80 penalty minutes in 27 games with the Abbotsford Heat. Hartley will look to Aliu for a forth line checking role and hope that he can bring some energy to a team who has appeared somewhat deflated of late.

Fans have seemingly begun to throw in their towels as the Flames continue to show signs of inconsistency. Despite a few flashes of brilliance, Calgary has simply not been able to steady themselves and hold any momentum. While it`s still considered early, time is really starting to work against the Flames and they cannot afford to lose too many more games this early into the season.

The Flames will play the Minnesota Wild next on Saturday night and will look to start a positive streak after two days off.

Thanks for reading!

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