Five observations from Calgary vs Buffalo:
1. Taking care of business If the Flames want to be playing meaningful hockey in April, they have to go on a run. There's no other way around it. They need to win the majority of their remaining games and can't afford let downs, especially against opponents they should easily beat like Buffalo.
They certainly avoided a let down last night as they came out and took it to a watered down, struggling Sabres team from start to finish.
Sam Bennett and Mark Jankowski potted early goals to give the Flames a 2-0 cushion before the Sabres could even settle in and that set the tone for the rest of the night.
The Flames out-chanced the Sabres – sometimes significantly – in all three periods and gave up almost nothing defensively. Kelly Hrudey even commented every time the Sabres generated a chance as if it were a rare event (it was).
Perhaps most importantly, the Flames *finally* did a good job of kicking a team while they were down. When they got out to a big lead, they continued pushing rather than sitting back and giving the opposition a chance to find their footing.
The Sabres are the Sabres but that was a really impressive effort from the Flames. It was near perfect, really.
2. The top line shredded Micheal Ferland, nor the top line, looked overly good vs Pittsburgh. One would think an up-tempo, high-event contest would be perfect for them to due their thing but they just didn't look right. They were sloppy with the puck, Johnny Gaudreau was missing the net on clear cut breakaways, and Ferland was even dropped down the lineup to try and shake things up.
That was far from necessary last night.
The big line accounted for two of the team's five goals, both of which came at even-strength, and the ice was tilted severely in Calgary's favor every time they were out there.
In ~10:30 together, the Flames out-attemped the Sabres 15-2, out-chanced them 7-0, and, of course, out-scored them 2-0. All three of them registered at least a point as well.
Thanks to the game being well in hand, Glen Gulutzan was also able to rest them up. Of the three, Gaudreau logged the most ice and he only played 15:06. For perspective, Matt Stajan(!!) played 14:13. It may not seem like much, but a few less shifts here and there adds up – especially when most guys are at least a little banged up this late in the season.
3. David Rittich bounced back Rittich wasn't exactly peppered with shots, especially of quality, but he made the stops he had to and that's what matters.
He didn't leave many rebounds for the Sabres to pounce at and showed the calmness and control we grew accustomed to seeing in his earlier starts. He didn't overcommit to anything, he didn't take himself out of position, he didn't get himself into trouble trying to play the puck. He just stayed in his net and got the job done.
I would have loved to see him get the shutout but I think stopping 25-26 (.962SV%) and getting a much-needed win will still provide a confidence boost.
4. Matthew Tkachuk gave the Sabres fits The only negative thing you can say about Tkachuk last night is he didn't record a point because he did everything else. He was a beast down low. Nobody could touch him or get the puck off him in the cycle game and he generated quite a few chances around the net. Nobody on either side had more shots (6) or chances (4). He was also his usual self pissing off half the Sabres' roster including goaltender Robin Lehner, who has a very short fuse. It's so fun watching him do his thing every couple nights.
5. T.J. Brodie is coming alive He was good in Pittsburgh the other night. He was *great* in Buffalo. He was very active in the offensive zone and generated quite a few good looks, be it for himself or hitting open teammates with crisp passes. Brodie also looked really steady defensively. He, and Travis Hamonic, seemed to do a better job of stepping up in the neutral zone and preventing easy entries, which has been a problem all season long. Brodie looked like the guy everyone fell in love with when he played with Mark Giordano a couple seasons ago. The Flames' chances of getting in will be much higher if we see that guy more often down the stretch.
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