The Calgary Flames were unable to make it four straight last night, as they fell to the St. Louis Blues by a 2-1 final. It was a valiant effort from the Flames, who were on the second half of a back-to-back after facing off against the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday. They looked like a tired group in this one, and weren’t able to muster up much offence.
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This one stings, as it puts the Blues just two points shy of the Flames in the playoff chase. While back-to-backs are looked at by many as a scheduled loss, it would have been great to see them steal one against a team they are in the hunt against. With that said, here’s a look at the three main takeaways from this low-scoring affair.
Flames’ Top Stars Quiet
As mentioned, there wasn’t a ton of offence from the Flames in this game. They were held scoreless through the opening 40 minutes, but were able to get a goal from Kevin Bahl, his second of the season, to even things up for a brief period in the third. However, it didn’t last long as Radek Faksa scored the game-winner just over five minutes later.
Martin Pospisil and Nazem Kadri picked up assists on Bahl’s goal. Aside from Kadri, it was a rather quiet night for the Flames’ top scorers. Jonathan Huberdeau was held without a shot, while others such as Matt Coronato, Blake Coleman and Mikael Backlund didn’t generate a ton of chances. Expect better games from all four next time out.
Vladar Gave Flames a Chance
Dan Vladar has taken some flak from Flames fans as of late, and he didn’t help his case by giving up a goal to Colton Parayko less than a minute into the game. However, he was nearly perfect the rest of the way, allowing only one more to Faksa for the remaining 59 minutes. He turned in a solid performance, kicking aside 23 of the 25 shots he faced.
“I thought he got better as the game went on,” head coach Ryan Huska said of Vladar. “There was a stretch in the second period, it felt like about five minutes straight we were in our zone and he made some saves at that point, and that’s what we need from him. Seems like when Dan’s in the net we don’t get a lot of run support for him, so that’s what kind of makes it a tougher one. I felt like the game was there’s to at least get ourselves into overtime, but like I said, one mistake and sometimes that’s the way it is in close games.”
With the loss, Vladar’s record falls to 6-8-5 on the season, while he also sports a 3.03 goals-against average (GAA) paired with a .889 save percentage (SV%). It’s not fair to put this loss on his shoulders, but he is struggling much more than Dustin Wolf when it comes to picking up wins, and it’s fair to suggest that Wolf should be given the bulk of starts going forward based on what he’s shown through the first half of the season.
Penalty Kill Solid Once Again
As impressive as the Flames have been this season, their biggest Achilles heel through 43 games has been their penalty kill. It’s an area which Huska has voiced his displeasure with on several occasions, though it seems to be showing some signs of life as of late. They were able to kill off both the Blues’ power play opportunities in this one, marking the second time in three games they haven’t given up a power play goal.
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There’s still a long way to go for the Flames in their efforts of having a good penalty kill, as they sit 30th in the NHL with a success rate of only 71 percent. That said, these latest improvements should go a long way in helping improve their confidence in that area of their game as they enter the second half of the 2024-25 campaign.
Looking Ahead for the Flames
While giving up two points to a team right behind them in the standings isn’t ideal, the Flames will have a chance for revenge on Thursday, as they will face the Blues once again. They will then head north to take on the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday to wrap up their four-game road trip.
