|
40-minute effort not enough as Flames drop important game to Sharks |
|
|
|
|
|
Follow me on Twitter @ToddCordell
Five notes from Calgary vs San Jose:
1) As a whole, I thought the Flames were the better team but I didn't think they were as deserving of a win last night as they have been in recent games. After a pretty good 1st period, they basically no-showed in the 2nd period and for ~half the frame they would have been as successful putting five pylons on the ice rather than players. The Sharks are a good team – it's no fluke they're on a 7-2-2 run – and one that you can't take the foot off the gas against. The Flames did that last night and they paid for it. Sure, they put together a great 3rd but you're generally not going to beat a contender if you do absolutely nothing for 10 minutes (17%!) of a game.
2) After a few strong showings, Mike Smith put up a bit of a dud vs San Jose. He wasn't a complete disaster but he took a penalty that led directly to a goal and the eventual winner he allowed with three minutes left was soft. The Flames have had a lot of things go the other way of late so they can't really afford their goaltender to pull the rug from beneath them.
3) What has gotten into Garnet Hathaway? A season ago he couldn't make a play with the puck on his stick and the only thing he really brought to the team was some forechecking ability and the occasional big hit. Right now he looks like a legitimate 3rd line player. He's generating chances, finding the scoresheet pretty frequently, and has been a surprisingly good possession driver. I'd still give the 3rd line spot to Jaromir Jagr when he returns but Hathaway could provide a nice spark to a 4th line that could certainly use it.
4) Given how well he's played over the last couple weeks, I'd like to see Sam Bennett on the power play rather than Troy Brouwer. Bennett is the better player and the power play has struggled so I don't see what harm changing things up could cause.
5) Curtis Lazar has four scoring chances in his last nine games and hasn't scored a goal in 23 games this season. He's given little reason to warrant playing him on a nightly basis, let alone trading a 2nd round pick for him.
I criticized the trade at the time and it somehow looks even worse now. The Flames could've used that 2nd rounder to get a useful rental at the deadline. Instead, they have a guy who has scored once in his last 68 games. Good stuff.
Recent posts:
Could the Flames be eying Evander Kane?
On Hamilton's increased usage and Ferland's strong play
Flames sign Glenn Gawdin to entry-level contract
Flames smart to replace Brouwer with Ferland on the power play
Calgary Flames Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»