The Calgary Flames were unable to build off of Sunday night’s victory, falling to the Toronto Maple Leafs by a 4-3 final. The Flames had some good moments in this one, but sloppy plays, particularly in the defensive zone, played a big part in what is already their eighth regulation loss of the season.
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This isn’t a time for moral victories for the Flames, who are now 2-8-1 on the season. The ugly start is making their playoff hopes diminish in a big way, if not entirely. They are going to need to begin digging themselves out of this hole soon, but, to this point, have been unable to do so. With that said, here are the three main takeaways from Tuesday night’s game.
Giveaways Plague Flames
Though they were up 1-0 and 2-1, the Flames were uncharacteristically sloppy in this one. They had far too many giveaways and defensive lapses to be successful against a dangerous Maple Leafs roster, and in the end, they paid for it.
“I think we struggled to move the puck from our zone out tonight,” head coach Ryan Huska said. “I think that’s where we got ourselves into our most problems.”
After being such a tight-checking group that was tough to generate offence against in 2024-25, the Flames have seemingly taken a step backward through the first 11 games of 2025-26. Dustin Wolf can only do so much and will need his teammates in front of him to do a better job at playing a simpler style going forward.
Honzek Gets First NHL Goal
Based on the way he’s played so far this season, it felt like it was only a matter of time before Sam Honzek scored the first goal of his NHL career. The 20-year-old has been excellent on a line with Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman, and has had plenty of great scoring opportunities in recent games.
“Really, really happy that it finally went in,” Honzek told reporters postgame. “I’ve hit a couple posts, and been kind of unlucky. I’m happy it went in, but if the result of the game were different, it’d be way better.”
The wait for Honzek to get his first one is finally over, as he was able to find the back of the net past the midway point of the third period to tie the game up at three. It was a nice display of offensive touch from the 2023 first-round pick, who found himself in alone on Anthony Stolarz and made no mistake.
Offence Slowly Coming to Life
Early on in this 2025-26 season, it felt as though goals were nearly impossible to come by for the Flames. While their season total still remains low, however, they are starting to find the back of the net with more regularity as of late. This game versus the Maple Leafs marked the third straight in which they’ve scored at least three.
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The Flames have found the back of the net 11 times over their last three outings, after having only managed 11 through their first eight games of the season. It’s a positive trend that should allow them to be more competitive moving forward, should they be able to sustain it.
Looking Ahead for the Flames
Tuesday’s game versus the Maple Leafs marked the start of a four-game road trip for the Flames, who will have Wednesday off before taking on the Ottawa Senators on Thursday. They will then head to Music City to take on the Nashville Predators on Saturday afternoon, before facing the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday to end their week.
