You may remember October 29, 2022, as the day that fun died for Calgary Flames fans. A two goal lead was blown en route to a 3-2 loss to their provincial rival, the Edmonton Oilers. The collapse triggered a seven game losing streak laden with blown leads and overtime disappointments. That stretch is well regarded by players on the team as the start of what became a perpetuating cycle of negativity.
While there were small pockets of happiness — a win here, a highlight there, most of said pockets were more or less a setup for ultimately another back breaking experience.
So, while Flames fans are surely making a bit of a mountain out of the molehill that was a 10-0 preseason debut against a mostly AHL-quality Vancouver roster — maybe it’s understandable. It’s been 332 days of misery. If you remove Calgary’s 5-1-1 start last season, you can extend that misery back further to game one of the second round of the 2022 NHL Playoffs.
There aren't too many rules for the writers on HockeyBuzz. Don’t quote too much from other publication’s articles. Stay within the bounds of respectful discourse. Don’t write specific articles about other teams without running it by that team’s writer first.
One self-imposed rule for the Flames spot is to never quote the 90’s-00’s band STAIND. But you know what?
It’s Been a While.
-STAIND
A few notes on the game.
Scoronato
With three goals on three shots and a takeaway leading to an assist,
Matthew Coronato started his Flames career with a bang. The shot on his third goal was simply unreal. Here is a highlight package that will do a bit more justice than a verbal description.
The Return of the Swagger
Also getting involved were
Jonathan Huberdeau, two highlight reel goals, and
Nazem Kadri, one highlight reel goal and two highlight reel assists.
A scare came in the second period when Canucks defenceman
Matt Irwin collided knees with Huberdeau, but the 10.5 million dollar winger promptly got himself back on the ice to pot his second goal of the night.
If those two put in a full season with their confidence going? We’ve already quoted STAIND once, why not?
Everything Changes
-STAIND
Also of note was
Jacob Markstrom who saved all 20 shots thrown at him over two periods before
Oskar Dansk took over. If 10 goals against wasn’t bad enough, the Canucks were also shut out by two goalies in the match.
At the end of the day, none of it matters until the regular season commences. Plenty of fanbases have had their preseason hubris smashed on the rocks of October. For the next 12 hours though?
Take This
-STAIND
A bit of a reach, but hey, 10-0.
Split Squad vs. Seattle
There won’t be much time to bask in glory as Calgary gets back at it tonight with two games and potentially a 20-0 goal differential if things stay at their current pace. We’ll have the lineups up when they become available, but for now, we have the rosters each team is using in their respective cities courtesy of Mike Benton.
@Benton_Mike
A younger group heads to Seattle to take on Matthew Beniers, Jordan Eberle and Jared McCann among other NHL vets.
In Calgary, we see the Mangiapane-Backlund-Coleman line return to the ice. 22 year old
Jakob Pelletier has a tough act to follow after Coronato’s big night.
Backup Derby
It’s difficult to contend that the backup role is
Daniel Vladar’s to lose. Tonight
Dustin Wolf starts in Calgary and Vladar starts in Seattle. If the 26 year old Czech stumbles and Wolf stands on his head this week? — we may start seeing embers of controversy at the backup goaltender position.
First Round Comparisons
One interesting aspect to watch will be the play of
Samuel Honzek and
Eduard Sale in Seattle. Honzek was taken 16th overall at the NHL Entry draft this offseason and Sale was taken four picks later at #20.
Sale has a season in Chechia’s highest league under his belt and is more of a sniper. He’s seen as a bit of a top six or bust kind of prospect. Honzek has a more well-rounded game and plays a more physical game. This is the time of year for premature evaluation, so why not indulge?
Game times are 7:00 p.m. in Calgary and 8:00 p.m. in Seattle. Both are mountain time. It appears that Sportsnet doesn’t have this game scheduled. A live stream of the game in Calgary will be available at calgaryflames.com.
Trevor Neufeld
@Trevor_Neufeld
Stats via eliteprospects.com.
Calgary Flames Blogger • 
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