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The Calgary Flames will get away from the -2 degree weather of Calgary and be comforted with some 25 degree weather in Sunrise Florida as they take to the ice against the Panthers.
To be perfectly honest, I am not entirely sure what to expect from tonight’s game. Both teams hold similar records throughout their last ten games played, Florida with 11pts and Calgary with 12, and both have lost their last contest.
That said, the Panthers home record (2-2-0) compared to the Flames’ road record (6-3-0) would offer an advantage for the road team coming into this game, despite the fact that Florida has back to back home wins.
And while I expected to write this blog in favour of the Flames, it seems that teams struggle on the road when playing in places like California (for obvious reasons), and in Florida as well. While the strength of competition isn’t exactly the same in both areas, I often wonder if the nice weather and area perhaps takes away from the seriousness of the game?
I don’t know; it’s just I have often found that teams come into games like these a little slow and ill prepared and wondered if it had to do with going from -2 degree weather to wearing shorts again.
Let’s be honest, the Florida Panthers aren’t exactly a powerhouse of a team and while they share a similar ten game record as do the Flames, my money would still be on Calgary without much hesitation.
So let’s get into it. The Flames are coming off a loss in Florida against the Tampa Bay Lightning and are looking to get back on track with a win tonight. They weren’t happy with their start or their overall effort against the Bolts which, as I explained above, could have been due to the area in which they played?
"We just have to bounce back," said Hartley. "This team has showed so much resiliency and everything. We'll go back to the drawing board. It's disappointing but it's one game."
''I don't think that we looked like a bunch of fat cats out there," Hartley said. "It's not a matter that they outworked us. They outsmarted us because we made some bad mistakes, but it's a game of mistakes. No one does it on purpose, especially not in this organization.''
So they understand what they need to do and realize that they can’t win them all. The team will need to come out with energy and throw pucks against the net as they likely face Roberto Luongo who many of the players should be familiar with. The Panthers are last in the league with 16 goals for and have only scored more than two goals, once this year.
With that in mind, if Calgary can play sound defensive hockey and offer a strong fore-check, they should be able to get on the board early and maintain the lead. Conversely, an early deficit where the team starts chasing the lead and we could be in for a much closer game than we had hoped for, or a loss for that matter.
“Hockey is a simple game,… says Hartley. “It’s all about execution — knowing your roles, knowing where you’re supposed to be — and executing at a high level. We’re getting there. There’s big parts of our game that are really improved.
“I like how the players are loose. They’re not comfortable, they’re loose. “They’re on the job. That’s what I want.…
Outside of tonight’s game, I had an interesting idea for a future blog and thought I’d introduce the thought a little early.
I had tickets for an upcoming home game which unfortunately I could not make, and was hoping to have a blog which not only covered the game, but my overall experience as well!
Chat with some folks around the rink, get a feeling for the actual atmosphere which the Flames have offered through such entertaining hockey and write about the game through analytical eyes, but also that of a fans overall experience!
I intend on writing this blog in about a week or so, and would like to hear your thoughts on what you’d like to read about. So please share!
That’s all for today folks, thanks for reading!