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The Calgary Flames played host to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night, and similar to their last couple of games, have been struggling to find the back of the net.
Scoring only one goal in their last three games, the Flames have recently lost their ability to put up goals as their once “hot… players, have suddenly begun to turn “cold…. While this is expected on most teams, the Flames lack of secondary or tertiary scoring has been their Achilles heel of late.
In spite of the fact that the goaltending and overall defensive game hasn’t been bad, the fact that the team cannot put up goals certainly makes it hard to win games. Registering a lower amount of shots on net throughout these games have also resulted in the lack of goals, but I would argue that with a young and inexperienced team, droughts like these may be tough to overcome.
“That can be a little bit of an excuse,… said Stempniak, goalless in 11 dates. “We’re all in the NHL because we’re good players. Ultimately, you just have to believe in yourself and believe that you’re capable of getting the job done. Certainly, you feel a little bit better if you’ve been scoring.“But to me, (the confidence issue) is a little bit of a cop-out. I think you have to take ownership of it and be ready for the next opportunity that comes.…
Not willing to make excuses for any of their play, the team is hoping to bounce back and they feel that with their hard work, that they shouldn’t be held off the score sheet for much longer. Goal scoring has not been an issue for the Flames, and perhaps the team has been focusing a little too much on the defensive side of the game to take a few extra offensive chances. The team will need to find a nice balance between both in order to get back to keeping games close and or finding wins.
“They are working. No one makes a bad read or makes a bad pass on purpose. The one thing we will not accept is a lack of effort and that is definitely not the case.…
In terms of their play, Brian Burke has recently mentioned how he feels the team has been too “soft… and doesn’t like the way they’ve been pushed around this year. As such, the Flames recently brought in enforcer Kevin Westgarth who is known for his abilities to drop the mitts which should hopefully allow for a few of the smaller, more skilled players, to play to their games and not have to worry about this aspect of the game as much.
While Westgarth doesn’t make the team much stronger in terms of their depth, per se, he will certainly help make the team tougher to play against – something the organization was seeking to achieve this year.
“I don’t like the way we’ve been pushed around,… the team’s acting general manager said Monday night after a weekend which saw his team shut out 2-0 at home by both the Edmonton Oilers and the Vancouver Canucks. “I don’t think that’s any secret.“And having one guy that’ll answer the bell? That’s not enough in our league.…
As mentioned above, Burke feels that with only one “tough guy… on the roster, the Flames are simply not a very tough team to play against. When McGrattan is either too tired, in the box, or thrown out of a game, the Flames really don’t have anyone else who can drop the mitts and make an impression, if you will.
As a result, we have seen guys like Lee Stempniak and Matt Stajan answer the bell this year, and while it is nice to see that they will stand up for their teammates, these guys are not know for, nor should they be, fighting guys.
Perhaps having both McGrattan and Westgarth on their fourth line will allow some of the smaller guys on the team to focus on their skilled games, and send a message to the opposition that there won’t be any liberties taken towards their top guys. Once the skilled guys get back to their games, it should only follow that the team finds some success again. “This group works like dogs and I’m proud of that,… Burke said. “And, second, they stick with the game plan. We get behind (during a game) and no one tries to do things themselves. They stick with the game plan.
“Those are two critical building blocks as we get better. The team can’t advance unless they have those two building blocks, which we do.
“That’s a credit to (head coach) Bob Hartley.…
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Some news to announce is that the Flames have recently signed prospect Emile Poirier to an entry-level deal. Poirier, selected 22nd overall in the 2013 draft, signed a three-year contract which holds an AAV of $925,000, and also includes a signing bonus of $92,500 each year.
The 19 year old winger has been doing quite well since being selected by the Flames – a pick might I add which had a lot of fans/media members raising a brow. Emile has registered 53pts in 36 games playing for the Gatineau Olympics of the QMJHL.
Other news is that it appears defenseman Dennis Wideman may make his return tomorrow night in Tampa to take on the Lightning. Out since November 27th, the veteran defenseman has been missed on the Flames backend and should help with respect to putting up some points, as he has registered points at a 0.5ppg pace so far this season.
That’s all for today folks, thanks for reading!