Flames managed to win their second in a row last night, dumping the Blue Jackets 2-1. Unfortunately, it was hardly in an inspired or convincing fashion. Talk about a bad contest for Sportsnet to broadcast - this was one of the ugliest wins I've seen in awhile. It was red-headed-step-child ugly. It was I-coulda-played-on-the-first-line-in-the-second-period ugly. How ugly is that? Mick Jagger ugly, at least.
Despite the victory, the contest vs. Columbus showcased a lot of Calgary's current short-comings - primarily to do with offense. The Flames squandered 7 PP opportunities, 5 in the first period. The two goals Calgary did manage to muster (both in the 3rd) were garbage goals; the first a rebound, the second a rebound-triple-deflection-lucky-bounce.
Clearly, the Flames still suffer from a complete lack of polish and finish in the offensive zone. Opportunities to score are frequently wasted by fanning and/or shots fired wide. Or, as was the case twice last night, hitting the post. Actually, nothing symbolizes Calgary's offensive struggles more appropriatly than Jarome Iginla missing a wide-open cage during the powerplay by backhanding the puck wide of the net. WIDE. FROM THE SLOT. ON THE POWERPLAY. AT AN EMPTY NET.
Last night's struggles were all the more accentuated if you had managed to catch any of the recent Ottawa games; the contrast between Heatley effortlessly scoring 4 times in a game to Langkow shooting it over the net on a 2 on 1 are rather depressing for a Flames fan right now. As even the announcers noted during the game last night, the Flames seem to be fighting the puck in the neutral and offensive zones. Passes are hardly ever crisp or on the tape. Players frequently throw the puck away or panic when the biscuit comes to them. The forecheck is typically ineffectual. The powerplay seems stagnant and lacks creativity. I counted about 5 or 6 instances last night where a Flames player was left unsupported and alone while breaking into the offensive zone. The result was usually a pass to no one in the slot or a dump in. These were not instances in which the line was changing. AARGGH!
But, at least Calgary won. Of course, against anyone besides the Blue Jackets it would have been a drastically different story. So whether it's due to the systems in place, the players confidence level, or the ever elusive "chemistry", the Flames need to find their offensive game soon. Throwing away powerplays and missing open nets against teams like Vancouver, Detroit or Colorado will undoubtedly translate into a loss. And probably a big one.
Anyways, here's the positives and negatives -
Positives:
- 2 wins a row for the first time.
- Nilson finally gets a couple of points, including the game-winning goal.
- Flames keep the Jackets to 17 shots and 1 goal. Penalty killing is perfect, blanking all 4 Columbus chances.
- Reinprecht scores with a nifty skate-to-stick goal off of a rebound.
- Kobasew shows more flashes of speed and grit.
- Regehr returns and looks comfortable immediately. Was robbed of a goal by the post.
Negatives:
- Less than 3 goals for in a game again. 15 games and counting.
- Calgary again plays poorly at the start of the game. Five wasted powerplays in the first followed by one of the slowest, sloppiest, most uninspired second periods I've seen since the Flames lost to the Wild in the season opener.
- Primary scoring absent:
- Jarome Iginla's 7 game point streak is halted. After missing several good chances in the first period, Iginla was largely ineffectual for the rest of the game.
- Langkow and Amonte again fail to score. Amonte hit the post and Langkow was typically unnoticable...unless he was shooting the puck wide.
- Jordan Leopold still pointless. 15 games and counting.
- Edmonton somehow beat Detroit. Double BOOOOO.
Up next - the Canucks!
