The Calgary Flames battled back, but were unable to complete the comeback versus their provincial rival Edmonton Oilers on Sunday night. It was a valiant effort from Alberta’s southern NHL team, but an ugly first 10 minutes of the game ultimately did them in.
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There were some positives to take away from this one, as the Flames, for the second time this season, didn’t at all appear to be overmatched by an Oilers team many expect to win the Stanley Cup this coming year. With that said, here are the three main takeaways from this outing.
Ugly Way to Start
The Flames were not at all ready to go early on in this one, giving up a goal to Leon Draisaitl just 20 seconds in. It was a tough look for the Rasmus Andersson/Kevin Bahl pairing, which left the Oilers superstar completely on his own in front of the net. To no surprise, he made no mistake, placing a backhander over the shoulder of Dan Vladar.
The Oilers continued to carry play for the next several minutes, and were rewarded a short time later as Jeff Skinner put one past Vladar on a spectacular effort. The Saddledome was quite quiet afterward, with many seeming to feel as though a blowout may be taking place.
To the Flames’ credit, they battled back and seemed to control the majority of play for the rest of the night. They learned the hard way, however, that against a team as skilled as the Oilers, you can’t afford to start a game late, or they’ll make you pay.
Pospisil Continues Taking Penalties
Since making his way onto the roster early last season, Martin Pospisil has been a very positive addition to the Flames. He can skate with the best of them, hits everything that moves, isn’t afraid to drop the gloves, and can even chip in offensively. The one negative, however, is his lack of discipline.
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That lack of discipline was on display in this one, as he took an offensive zone penalty in the third period with the game tied at two apiece. It was a costly one, as Zach Hyman finished off a beautiful give-and-go with Ryan Nugent Hopkins to give the Oilers a lead, one in which they did not give back up. To his credit, Pospisil owned his mistake, but it’s becoming a glaring issue in his game, and is something he will need to clean up going forward.
Vladar Earning More Starts
For the first time this season, Vladar was able to make starts in back-to-back games. Through the first 11 outings of the season, head coach Ryan Huska had been rotating Vladar and Dustin Wolf every outing. That changed in this one, as Vladar was back in between the pipes after a shutout performance versus the New Jersey Devils on Friday (Nov. 1).
Though Vladar wasn’t perfect in this one, he had himself another solid game. It wasn’t easy, as he allowed the first shot to find the back of the net, but was able to dig deep and wound up kicking aside 27 of the 30 shots he faced. With the strong performance, he now has a 2.71 goals-against average (GAA) along with a .907 save percentage (SV%), numbers that are far better than what he compiled in each of the past two seasons.
Looking Ahead for the Flames
Today will serve as a travel day for the Flames, who are back in action Tuesday night against the Montreal Canadiens. They will then take on the Boston Bruins on Thursday night and the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday afternoon before heading back to Calgary. All three will be big matches, as they are looking to keep their record above .500 on the season.
