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THW's Flames news for 03/22/2021
The latest Flames stories from The Hockey Writers.
03/22/2021 edition:
By Colton Pankiw on Mar 22, 2021 09:45 am
Flames Weekly is our new series on how the Calgary Flames performed the previous week. Be sure to check in every Monday for our take on the week that was and to find out which storylines and players took center stage. Feel free to use the comment section below to let us know how you thought the team performed this past week or to post any other ideas or questions you have about the Flames.
Heading into this past week, the Flames appeared to be getting on the right track, led by newly hired head coach Darryl Sutter. They were able to defeat the Montreal Canadiens in convincing fashion on both March 11 and March 13, which were Sutter’s first two games behind the bench. Many hoped that this was the start of big run for this team, and that perhaps the true problem so far this season was coaching all along.
Unfortunately, their inconsistent play returned this past week, proving that this team’s problems run deeper than just the head coaching position.
Erratic Versus Edmonton
Monday night’s game against the Edmonton Oilers, the first of two against them last week, went quite well for the Flames. As they had done in their previous two versus Montreal, they played a very tight-checking, fast-paced style and were able to walk away with a 4-3 win.
Many have questioned the locker room of this team and for fair reason, as at times throughout the season they don’t seem to be playing for each other or having one another’s back. However, after Oliver Kylington received a high hit in the first period from Jujhar Khaira and had to briefly leave the game, Brett Ritchie took on Khaira the very next shift. Ritchie was able to get the best of Khaira in the fight, which ended with the Oilers forward needing help off the ice. While that was tough to watch regardless of which team you cheer for, it was nice to see Ritchie come to the defence of his teammate.
It really did appear things were turning around with this group, until Wednesday night happened. The Flames got blown out for a sixth time this season, as the Oilers, led by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl’s three points apiece, won by a decisive score of 7-3. The hope here is that this was just a one-off under Sutter, but given how many times blowouts seem to occur with this team, it’s tough to be confident in that.
Lucky Against Leafs
After Edmonton, the Flames headed to Toronto for a back to back set against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday and Saturday night. In many ways, this mini two-game series was quite similar to the previous against the Oilers. Like the first game against Edmonton, they were able to defeat the Leafs by a score of 4-3. However, this game was not nearly as impressive of a group effort, as they had a horrendous third period and likely wouldn’t have walked away with two points had it not been for the goaltending of Jacob Markstrom. Still, a win is a win, and this team needs those in a big way right now.
Unfortunately, the luck ran out Saturday in a 2-0 loss, at least partially. While the 2-0 score doesn’t look bad, this game could have been a lot uglier had it not been for multiple posts and crossbars hit by the Maple Leafs throughout. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case, as another blowout would have likely caused somewhat of a media frenzy in Calgary.
When the pucks were on net, David Rittich was able to kick 31 of 33 away, but was outdueled by Jack Campbell who had a 31-save shutout in what was his first start since Feb. 27.
Tough Schedule
While this may seem negative, and their play certainly was disappointing at times, this week all and all was not too bad for the Flames. The Maple Leafs and Oilers are who most would consider to be the top teams of the Scotia North Division, so going .500 against them is a fairly positive feat. The unfortunate thing is that it lost them some ground in the standings. They currently sit four points behind the Canadiens for the final playoff spot, while also having played one more game.
On top of that, the Vancouver Canucks, who have been red hot as of late, took over fifth place from the Flames. The good news in that regard for the Flames is that they have three games in hand of Vancouver and sit just two points back, but it really shows just how tight this race will likely be until the very end of the season, and emphasizes just how important every point is.
Looking Ahead
Speaking of points, the Flames have a good chance to pick some up and gain ground this week. They will take on the lowly Ottawa Senators both Monday and Wednesday night, a team who everyone in the division is beating up on this year. Everyone besides the Flames that is, as Calgary has gone just 2-2-1 in five games against them this season. That has to change this week, as picking up all four points in those two games is critical for their playoff hopes.
What really bodes well for the Flames in those two games is that the Senators have ran into some huge injury problems as of late to their goaltenders. Starting netminder Matt Murray is week-to-week with an upper-body injury, while backup Marcus Hogberg is on the injured reserve with a lower-body injury. As if that wasn’t bad enough, 24-year-old Joey Daccord needed to be helped off the ice in a game Wednesday night versus the Canucks, and is expected to miss the remainder of the season.
That leaves 22-year-old Filip Gustavsson along with 20-year-old Kevin Mandolese as the team’s only two options at this point. Neither have made a start in the NHL, and Mandolese has played in just two games as a professional. Both have bright futures ahead of them, but with how inexperienced they are, there is no excuse for the Flames not to jump all over them.
After the two games versus the Senators, the Flames will return home to Calgary and prepare to take on the Winnipeg Jets both Friday and Saturday night. The Jets have a much more intimidating goaltending duo in Connor Hellebuyck and Laurent Brossoit. While Hellebuyck has struggled a bit this season for his standards, he is the reigning Vezina Trophy winner and regarded as one of the game’s best puck stoppers. Brossoit on the other hand is having a fantastic season, though in limited fashion as he has appeared in just eight games.
Winnipeg also has a ton of talent up front, led by Mark Scheifele who has 37 points on the season. Nikolaj Ehlers and Kyle Connor are the two others up front with 30 or more points, while captain Blake Wheeler is close with 26. They certainly won’t be an easy matchup for the Flames, though they are capable of winning at least one if not both contests if they can just find some consistency and bring their “A” game.
Rise in the Standings
As mentioned, this week is huge for the Flames if they want to not only stay in the playoff hunt, but inch closer towards it. Monday and Wednesday night’s games are must wins. If they are able to do that, and pick up one against the Jets, that would give them six huge points and certainly have them right back in the thick of things.
By Greg Boysen on Mar 21, 2021 01:57 pm
The Los Angeles Kings’ top pick in 2020 is finding his groove in the American Hockey League (AHL) and continued his goal-scoring streak. A full slate in the Western Hockey League (WHL) gave us great performances from a defensive prospect of the Minnesota Wild and a Calgary Flames hopeful between the pipe. We even got a goalie goal in the United States Hockey League (USHL).
Quinton Byfield Stays Red Hot
There are not as many teenagers in the AHL as there were to begin the season as all the WHL prospects have returned to their respective teams. However, players from the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) are still playing professionally. One such player is Byfield, the second overall pick of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft by the Kings. After a bit of an adjustment, the youngster is starting to show why he was taken as high as he was.
Byfield and the Ontario Reign had a crazy game versus the Bakersfield Condors (Edmonton Oilers) on Saturday night. The young power forward did his thing by getting into the dirty area of the ice and putting his team up 2-1 late in the first period.
Unfortunately for the Reign, the Condors scored five unanswered goals in the third period to pull out an 8-6 victory. It was a good night individually for a group of young players the Kings are hoping will be a part of their team for a long time to come. Alex Turcotte had two assists, Arthur Kaliyev scored a goal and Akil Thomas picked up a helper.
Byfield is up to four goals and 11 points on the season. He has scored a goal in each of his last three games and is on a four-game point streak after just one goal and seven points in his first 14 AHL games.
Daemon Hunt Contributes from the Blue Line
The Moose Jaw Warriors scored four power-play goals on Saturday night on their way to beating the Swift Current Broncos 5-1. Hunt scored the third and fourth of those power-play tallies, less than a minute apart, in the third period to put the game out of reach. He also assisted on the first two to finish the night with four points.
“Our power play was really good tonight,” Hunt said after the game. “In the third period, we really took over. It’s definitely a big win, but we still have a lot to work on, for sure. Our record is 4-1 right now and we are feeling really good about ourselves. Of course, we have reset every day because it’s a busy schedule.”
Minnesota drafted hunt in the third round (65th overall) of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. He was scoreless in his three AHL games with the Iowa Wild before returning to Moose Jaw. After no goals and 15 assists during the 2019-20 WHL season, he has four goals and seven points in five games in 2020-21.
Dustin Wolf Perfect in Season Debut
The Everett Silvertips are no stranger to having stud goaltenders after Carter Hart recently rewrote their record books. Their most recent prodigy between the pipes is Wolf, the Flames’ seventh-round (214th overall) in 2019.
The 19-year-old made his 2020-21 WHL debut on Saturday and he stopped all 22 shots he faced in a season-opening 2-0 win over the Spokane Chiefs.
This was the 21st shutout of Wolf’s junior career as he was named the Canadian Hockey League’s (CHL) Goaltender of the Year last season. The Tustin, CA native has now appeared in 183 career WHL games. He has a record of 89-31-4-2 with a .935 save percentage (SV%) and 1.83 goals-against average (GAA).
Todd Scott Scores a Goalie Goal
It’s unknown if Scott will ever be considered an NHL prospect or not, but the 20-year-old netminder had the thrill of a lifetime on Saturday night. He was all over the scoresheet as he made 19 saves and picked up two penalty minutes in the Tri-City Storm’s 7-4 victory over the Sioux Falls Stampede.
Scott capped off the scoring with a goal of his own after the Stampede pulled their netminder for an extra attacker.
The best part of this play is undoubtedly the celebration! Scott is undrafted and playing in the USHL as overage after three seasons in the WHL with the Vancouver Giants and Edmonton Oil Kings. In addition to his goal this season, he is 17-8-2 with a .904 SV%, 2.36 GAA and two shutouts.
By Jim Parsons on Mar 21, 2021 01:20 pm
In today’s NHL rumors rundown, the Buffalo Sabres are going to have trouble getting real value for Eric Staal and one NHL executive outlines the absolute best they’ll likely do on a return. There’s a trade proposal out there between the Philadelphia Flyers and Calgary Flames that another NHL exec thinks makes sense and the Vancouver Canucks are not sellers just yet. Finally, is there any chance the Toronto Maple Leafs acquire a defenseman?
Staal Return Not All That High
As part of a recent article for The Athletic, scribe Craig Custance ran some trade proposals by anonymous NHL executives and when asked if a trade between the Carolina Hurricanes and Buffalo Sabres made sense for Staal, the teams did, but not the asking price.
What was thrown out there was a second-round pick going to Buffalo for Staal, but the exec responded:
“Carolina says no. I think they would take him but not for a second-round pick. The absolute home run for Staal is a third-round pick. You’re probably looking at a fourth-rounder now. Buffalo has fewer teams to deal with.”
We’ve mentioned in previous reports that Canadian teams seem to be out of the running on Staal and with his age and salary, he’s not going to be as valuable on the trade market as some might have thought early on. It will be interesting to see if the difference in draft pick is a result of the Sabres choosing to retain salary on the player.
Flyers and Flames Have Right Pieces to Make a Deal?
When another executive was asked about trade between the Flyers and Flames — one that would see Johnny Gaudreau and a second-round pick go to the Flyers for Travis Konecny and a fifth-round pick — this was a trade that got some support. One NHL executive responded:
“Great one. That’s a great one. I think you have a deal. The reason is, there’s tons of room for Johnny in Philadelphia. Konecny fits into what Calgary is doing. The question to me is: Is Philly comfortable trading for Gaudreau when they have a great shot at him in free agency (in 2022)? Philly being just outside the playoffs today, this might help them get in the playoffs. The beauty is you get Johnny now and you can sign him. If they’re on the outside looking in, this is the offensive shot in the arm.”
Canucks Aren’t Sellers… At Least Not Yet
As per a report by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Vancouver Canucks have decided to hold off on becoming sellers now that they’ve climbed back into the Scotia North Division playoff race. Before deciding to offload assets, they want to see how things play out.
Not only that, but Satiar Shah of Sportsnet notes that, currently, the best-case scenario if the Canucks were to trade Tanner Pearson would now be to get a conditional draft pick for him — assuming he’s healthy enough to move before the trade deadline. There’s no need to rush a deal like that if the return isn’t there.
For other Canadian teams, this will slow down the market as clubs in the North Division might have been more likely to make deals amongst each other. With only the Ottawa Senators as true sellers, there’s not a lot for teams to pluck from. At this point, Friedman believes the amount of interest in the Senators’ pending UFAs will determine how busy they and the market is for Canadian clubs.
Friedman also notes the Columbus Blue Jackets are holding off after battling back into the postseason.
Maple Leafs Could Still Acquire a Defenseman
Yesterday, we noted that most insiders have the Maple Leafs pegged as a team that will trade for a forward. That said, Chris Johnston of Sportsnet says that GM Kyle Dubas could still land a blueliner before the deadline. Johnston acknowledged the Leafs have limited cap-space resources but he’s heard they are linked to a couple of defensemen.
Obviously, Mattias Ekholm is a name that has been linked to Toronto, but the asking price is up there. Could there be another player on the Leafs’ radar that no one is talking about?
By Brett Krauss on Mar 21, 2021 10:07 am
Due to the Canadian Hockey League delaying the 2020-21 seasons for the Western Hockey League and Ontario Hockey League, some teenagers have been able to get a taste of pro hockey. If you’re not familiar, the NHL and CHL have an agreement in place in which any players under the age of 20 are unable to play in the American Hockey League. Due to the ongoing pandemic and delayed seasons some players were able to play for their NHL affiliate AHL team.
This includes the Calgary Flames 2020 first-round pick Connor Zary who skated with the Stockton Heat after Flames camp and got into nine games. Back in October, Flames management kept fans eagerly waiting to hear who the team’s newest blue-chip prospect would be as they traded down twice from 19th to 22nd and then to 24th. After picking up two draft picks the Flames would then select the Saskatoon native.
Zary looked confident during Calgary’s training camp and in both intrasquad games before he was assigned to Stockton’s practice group who were awaiting their season schedule. He was given big minutes right out of the gate and he ran with the opportunity.
Zary Steps Right In
In his debut with the team, Zary was put on the team’s top line with Matthew Phillips and Adam Ruzicka. Right away he looked more than capable of playing at the pro level as he could keep up with his linemates and was finding the confidence to make plays. After a tough start to the season for the whole team, the top line found some chemistry as the trio combined for 33 points in nine games.
Zary collected his first assist in the AHL in his third game which came against the Toronto Marlies. On a rebound in front, he grabbed the puck and skated out from the corner and made a quick pass to the point for Colton Poolman who passed to across to eventual goal-scorer Zac Leslie. He showed good patience with the puck and waited until he found the open man in Poolman.
His first primary assist came during the team’s 8-1 drubbing of the Marlies. After retrieving the puck he skated from the blue line down the boards drawing in three defenders and found Mark Simpson sitting all alone in front of the net who easily one-timed it to the back of the net. It was one of a few passes that finally connected where Zary’s vision of the ice was becoming more noticeable.
3 Point Night Versus Belleville
Zary’s most impressive outing came in a 4-1 win over the Belleville Senators where he scored two goals and added an assist. His first career AHL goal came off of a rush into the zone when Ruzicka dropped the puck back and he ripped it short side past Filip Gustavsson. He is no stranger to scoring goals as he tucked 38 during the 2019-20 WHL season and is very good with placing his shots.
Zary’s second goal of the night may have been the goal of the night across the AHL. Just over three minutes after his first pro goal he scored his second of his career on a close play in front of the net. It came on a quick pass from Ruzicka to the far side in which Zary took on his backhand and reach his stick around Gustavsson to tuck it in the back of the net.
Stockton’s top line combined for eight points in the game as Zary added a secondary assist in the third period. He stripped a Senators player of the puck at the blue line and skated towards the net connecting with Phillips on a cross-crease pass and Ruzicka would bury the rebound. He finished his final four games with a goal and an assist before he had to make his way back to Kamloops.
Return to Play in Kamloops
The WHL’s B.C. division finally sorted out a start date and schedule and teams will begin play on March 26th. While abbreviated it will be Zary’s fourth season with the Blazers and he will be relied upon heavily by the team. Kamloops was leading their division by 14 points during the 2019-20 season when all sports came to a grinding halt due to coronavirus.
Zary will be a big part of Kamloops’ offence as they have lost three of their top five scorers from last season due to players ageing out. He has accumulated 182 points in 188 WHL contests and will be looking to finish his career at a point per game pace or better. The Blazers’ first game comes Friday, March 26th at home against the Vancouver Giants.
An Encouraging Debut
Zary had a very encouraging start to his professional career as he was given top-line minutes and excelled while looking very comfortable in his role. He will turn 20 in September and will be eligible to play for Stockton full-time. Next season he could very well be back on that same top line with Phillips and Ruzicka which was clicking at an elite rate.
At just nine games it’s a very small sample size but it’s encouraging to see that Zary was able to step into a big role in professional hockey. If the Blazers can have another strong campaign and lengthy playoff run it will be beneficial to his development and continuing to prepare to make the jump full-time to the pros. It’s a welcome sight early on as the Flames continue looking to add more depth on forward. A strong season in the AHL could warrant a look in the NHL as early as next season.
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