A few notes on yesterday’s game before we get to today’s match vs the Winnipeg Jets.
40 goals for Gaudreau Johnny Hockey became the third member of the Flames to notch his 40th goal. He joins fellow line mates Elias Lindholm and Matthew Tkachuk in that regard.
Gaudreau also leads the NHL in first assists (37), even strength points (90) and +/- (+65).
Third period push After a rather stale two periods, both teams ramped up the intensity for the last twenty minutes. With said increase in pace the Flames out-attempted the Wild 23-14 including 6-3 in high danger chances. The final stanza featured a glorious goal by Elias Lindholm to tie the game at 2-2 with only 2:56 left in the game.
Sour Note You could see the anguish on Rasmus Andersson’s face as he was assessed a two minute minor for closing his hand on the puck 0:34 into the overtime period. Brutal. After tonight the Flames won’t have 3v3 overtime or shootout to worry about. One has to wonder how that powerplay goes at 5v4 as opposed to 4v3.
The Winnipeg Jets One last game to wrap up the 21-22 season. The 50-20-11 Calgary Flames are in Winnipeg to play the 37-32-11 Jets. 111 points for the former and 85 points for the latter.
The Flames have an opportunity to lock up home ice advantage against any opponent in the Western Conference with the exception of the 119 point Colorado Avalanche. The Flames have one ROW more than the St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild should either team tie them in points.
Winnipeg, meanwhile, only stands to lose draft superiority to the New York Islanders if they win the game in regulation. A regulation or overtime loss combined with an Isles win puts them in 20th place. The Islanders play the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight at 5:30 and have won their last two.
A Last Look Rumours swirl that the Jets are approaching a shake up. The organization is reportedly unhappy with the results of the season and additionally need to lock up Pierre Luc Dubois to a long term contract. It’s likely Paul Statsny’s 3.5 million dollars will be added to Dubois’ five million dollar cap hit, but further changes are rumoured to occur.
Dubois has 59 points in 79 games this season and leads the league in penalties drawn at 45. Few centers play the physical style that he does.
Sharpening Up The Winnipeg Jets have rolled out the 5th worst penalty kill in the NHL over the month of April. Pair that with the Flames’ 10th ranked powerplay over that time and you have a recipe for trouble.
This game will likely feature a very conservative play style as the Flames likely will aim to not take an abundance of risks at the tail end of a back-to-back and playoffs looming. Tonight’s game very well may be decided by special teams.
Alpha Wolf Prospect Dustin Wolf was named to the AHL first all star team. This implies he has a good chance at winning the accolade for league’s best goalie— the Aldege Bastien Memorial Award. 33-8-3-1, .924 save percentage and a 2.33 goals against average. Not bad for a rookie.
With his impressive trajectory and #1 Jacob Markstrom signed for four more seasons after this one; one has to wonder how this will all play out.
Game time is 6:00pm mst. Dallas, Nashville, Colorado, and St. Louis all play tonight, so keep a hand on that remote.
Trevor Neufeld