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Five notes from Calgary vs Montreal:
1) Given the circumstances, I was extremely impressed with what I saw from the Flames last night. They were on the road playing their third game in four nights and, without the services of Matthew Tkachuk and Jaromir Jagr, their forward depth was lacking up front. Troy Brouwer has one goal in 29 games and played on the 2nd line. Garnet Hathaway, he of two goals in 46 NHL games, was just recalled a few days ago and skated on the 3rd line while the Flames iced a 4th line of Freddie Hamilton, Matt Stajan, and Curtis Lazar. Not exactly ideal. Despite that, they went into Montreal and won – and deservedly so. The Flames were credited with 3.49 expected goals while the Canadiens were credited with 2.37 (numbers via Corsica), meaning they got the better of the chances. It was nice to finally see them get rewarded for their efforts.
2) I don't know how long it'll last, but Hathaway has looked surprisingly good in a 3rd line role the last few games. He's providing the usual speed, physicality, and energy we've come to expect but he's also making some plays with the puck and creating chances. Last night, for example, he finished 2nd on the team with five shots on goal and 3rd in 5v5 chances with three. If he continues to play this well, it won't be him coming out of the lineup when Tkachuk and Jagr return.
3) Sean Monahan has always been a very good scorer but he's hitting another level this year. After potting another two goals last night, he now sits 3rd in the NHL – behind only Alex Ovechkin and Nikita Kucherov – with 17 in 29 games. He is shooting 20% so he's due for a little bit of regression, however, he has always been an above average shooter so the dip won't be as big for him as it would be for most. He is also generating a *ton* of chances (he ranks 6th in the NHL). As long as that continues, the goals should continue to be there.
4) If you're drafting a team for competitive 3-on-3 hockey, where does Johnny Gaudreau get selected? 1st? 2nd? 3rd? It can't be any lower than that. The guy is fantastic in any game state but it's almost not even fair in overtime. With the speed, skill, and passing there's pretty much no stopping him. Prior to the penalty in Toronto, he was probably the most dangerous player on the ice and he followed up by setting up the winner in Montreal. The guy is incredible.
5) Flukey goal aside, I thought David Rittich looked very solid. His positioning was good, he didn't give up many rebounds, and he was playing with a lot of confidence. If you take out the 20 minutes of mop-up duty vs Edmonton, and only look at his two starts, he has a .936 save percentage. Small sample size, obviously, but he's been good when actually given time to prepare. The Flames need that to be the case moving forward because they really need to cut down Mike Smith's workload.
Recent posts:
Losses continue to pile up as Flames fall to Maple Leafs
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 • 
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