The Calgary Flames were unable to exact revenge on the St. Louis Blues. After falling to the Blues by a 2-1 final on Tuesday night, they dropped last night’s rematch by a 4-1 final. While their effort in Tuesday’s loss was solid, especially given that it came on the second half of a back-to-back set, last night’s was unacceptable.
Related: Flames News & Rumors: Zary, Kerins, Wolf & More
The Flames were outclassed in this one from the get-go, and headed into the first intermission trailing 3-0 as a result. They were able to prevent it from becoming a full-on blowout, but still suffered the loss. Losing both of these last two games is tough, as the Blues are now just a point shy of the Flames in the standings. With that said, here are the three main takeaways from last night’s outing.
Wolf Not at His Best
It’s been an incredible season so far from Dustin Wolf, but he’d be the first to tell you last night wasn’t a very good showing. The rookie goaltender was tested early and often, but had a few goals he allowed in the first period which he would have liked to have back, particularly the second, which was a long-distance shot from Colton Parayko that beat him along the ice.
“Just disappointed,” MacKenzie Weegar said about the Flames’ performance. “Especially when these games are huge games right now with the standings how they are. That’s just preparation and focus. It’s happened a few times this year where we’ve kind of come out like that, especially on the road. It’s just disappointing. I’ve said this before, a lot of it comes [down] to leadership, getting guys ready and focused before games. It’s just disappointing, we can’t let that happen.”
To Wolf’s credit, he was able to battle back after a rough start and played solid over the final 40 minutes. Still, he’s capable of being far better, which he has shown plenty of times this season. Expect the 23-year-old to be much better in his next start, which could come on Saturday.
Flames Have Dried Up Offensively
The Flames haven’t been world-beaters in terms of offensive production this season. In fact, they are one of the lowest-scoring teams in the NHL. That said, they’ve hit a big rut these past two games, mustering up just two goals. Sometimes teams just run into hot goalies, but the concerning part is that the Flames have not been creating much of anything in terms of scoring opportunities.
“You could tell early on that they were the hungrier team,” head coach Ryan Huska said. “I look at our puck battles and how they were in there first to help support. We didn’t do a lot of great things in the first period.”
As per Natural Stat Trick, the Flames managed just five high-danger chances to the Blues’ 14. Getting just five high-danger opportunities is unacceptable for any team, let alone a Flames one that lacks a high-end offensive star. They’re going to need to quickly figure this out and figure out a way to generate far more going forward.
Pelletier and Kerins Chemistry Continues
While there weren’t many bright spots for the Flames in this one, Jakob Pelletier and recent call-up Rory Kerins were solid once again. The two spent time on a line together in the American Hockey League (AHL) and it’s been evident in their brief time together with the Flames.
Related: Calgary Flames’ Best All-Time
Pelletier and Kerins were both able to pick up assists on a Yegor Sharangovich goal in the second period. The assist gives Kerins three points through his first three NHL games, while Pelletier has four points over his last three outings. Huska isn’t likely to split the two young forwards up any time soon.
Looking Ahead for the Flames
The Flames have just one game remaining on their four-game road trip, which will come on Saturday against the Western Conference’s first-place team in the Winnipeg Jets. They’ll then return to Calgary and have some time off, with their next game not coming until Thursday against the lowly Buffalo Sabres.
