On the tail of a nail-biting 4-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres last night, the Flames will finish out a back-to-back against Johnny Gaudreau and the 1-2-0 Columbus Blue Jackets at 5:00 pm MST. A few notes on the team after four games, the game last night, and the game ahead.
The Quality There are certainly matters of concern. Calgary has blown eight leads in four games. One of them being a two-goal lead against the offensively anemic Washington Capitals. There are stretches of solid play that get ambushed by misplays and suddenly a hard-earned lead is dust.
Both Daniel Vladar and Jacob Markstrom have been shaky at times. Vladar got his first start last night and struggled for much of the first period.
Despite everything, the team is fun to watch. For those who watch the UFC, the team went from Tyron Woodley, who played it safe and waited until the final ten seconds to attack, to Nate Diaz, who put his hands down and traded shots from the first bell until the fight ended. Woodley finished his career with a better record and more belts, but Diaz drew better numbers and ultimately had more intriguing storylines.
The system is still a work in progress, but who cares? It’s fun to watch Flames games again.
Growing Pains A fact better off ignored is that Matthew Coronato’s 200-foot game may not be NHL-ready. He looks like the best player on the roster when Calgary shifts to the attack, but at -6 after four games — head coach Ryan Huska will have to address the issue when this condensed five-in-ten road trip concludes.
It seems like the 20 year old serves as a microcosm of the team’s play. Maybe not above average defensively, but who cares? Make some cool plays and have fun. The habits will come with repetition. You can tell he’s going to be catalyzing the power play sooner rather than later.
One adjustment that Huska should probably make is scaling his ice time back. In the Flames’ two wins this year, Coronato averaged 12:20 of ice time. In their two losses? 17:30. That’s a huge variance.
Speaking of power play catalysts.
Kadri It’s frustrating to watch Nazem Kadri working the right side of the umbrella at 5v4. His shot isn’t going, his footwork isn’t great — he doesn’t deserve to be on the first unit out of merit. Let alone in a trigger position. Fans can glance at the box score of last game, see he had an assist and assume he had a decent game. Far from it. He insists on being the guy to take the shot and he can barely hit the net right now.
Ruzicka On the other side of puck luck is Adam Ruzicka, whose third period snipe served as the game-winner. Ruzicka now has two goals and two assists in four games.
Calgary Flames Projected Lineup Courtesy of Brendan Parker. @BParkerTV
Huberdeau–Lindholm–Mangiapane Ruzicka-Kadri-Dube Coleman-Backlund-Coronato Greer-Sharangovich-DuehrHanifin-Andersson Zadorov-Weegar Gilbert-Tanev
Markstrom
Gaudreau - Jenner - Marchenko Fantilli - Laine - Texier Bemstrom - Sillinger - Johnson Danforth - Kuraly - RoslovicWerenski - Severson Provorov - Jiricek Bean - Gudbranson
Merzlikins
Game time is 5:00 pm MST. Catch the broadcast on Sportsnet in Canada and ESPN+ in the States.
Trevor Neufeld
@ Trevor_Neufeld Stats via ESPN, naturalstattrick, and eliteprospects.