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Five observations from Calgary vs Arizona:
1. More of the same
The opponents change, the story doesn't. That's the theme for the Flames this season.
Regardless of the circumstances, it's felt like history repeating itself every time they play. Last night was no different.
The Flames needed to win if they were to have a remote chance of getting into the playoffs. Early on, you could see that. As per usual, they came out and took it to their opponent pretty good in the opening period.
They won the high-danger chance battle 10-5 and had no problem generating quality looks around the net.
As has often been the case, actually converting on their abundance of chances was a problem.
Over the final 40 minutes the game was mostly even – which isn't good enough when facing a team that entered play sitting 31st – but the Flames made some really questionable decisions with the puck and they ended up proving costly.
With the Flames hellbent on getting in their own way every night, and nothing to play for, this home stretch could be difficult to watch.
2. Rasmus Andersson showed flashes
He made some effective breakout passes and didn't hesitate to take the puck and rush it up ice if there were lanes available. That was the good. A couple times he was a little too aggressive moving up ice and found himself out of position when teammates lost the puck and/or turned it over. You can see the talent is there. That's not even debatable. He just needs to learn when to pick his spots at the NHL level, which will come with time. The playoffs aren't happening so hopefully the coaching staff gives him steady minutes over the next couple weeks so he can adjust, develop, and know what to expect next season when he makes the jump full-time.
3. The top pairing was dominant
The Flames were in control of the game pretty much every time Mark Giordano and Dougie Hamilton hit the ice. In 15:28 together at 5v5, the Flames out-attempted the Coyotes 36-14, out-chanced them 17-8, and out-scored them 2-1.
They were effective breaking out of the zone, they didn't hesitate to jump into the rush, and were extremely involved offensively combining to fire 25 attempts towards the net.
4. The power play sucked
Remember when the Flames had success on the power play for a few weeks? Good times, good times.
They came up empty-handed in three opportunities against the Coyotes and struggled to generate anything that looked remotely dangerous.
The power play can't be good every night but performances like that have come far too often for the Flames, especially of late.
With the season on the line and every point pivotal, the man advantage reverted back to its old useless self.
With the personnel Calgary has, generating offense on the man advantage really shouldn't be this much of an issue. Something needs to change.
5. Sean Monahan continues to score
If Monahan is fighting through an injury, which the Sportsnet broadcast suggested to be the case, he's doing a heck of a job hiding it.
Monahan piled up eight shots on goal, seven scoring chances, and five high-danger chances, all of which were game-highs, while also burying a rebound goal to give the Flames a 2-1 lead late in the 2nd period. He did his part – at least offensively.
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