All the usual suspects were in attendance for Calgary's 2-1 loss against a tired and depleted Canucks team last night: lack of scoring, zero killer instinct, mediocre Jarome Iginla and absent secondary scoring. The result? Another loss where a win should be.
Yes, it's been a fairly familiar script this year. For one reason or another, the Flames simply do NOT show up against weaker opponents. The best strategy for opposition coaches and GM's to deploy against Calgary going forward would be to remove their top players and play their 3rd string goaltender. They'll almost be guaranteed a 2-1 or 3-2 victory.
What's the primary source of these woes? Considering that no Flame forward has scored a goal in the last 2 games (one of which was a victory) and the answer is clear: offense my dear. Offense.
At this point it's difficult to isolate one particular reason behind the Flame's continuing offensive impotence. And make no mistake about it - it IS impotence. Calgary currently sits 28th overall in the league in terms of goals for, with an average of 2.62. Only Columbus and Chicago are lower. Which means that Washington and even the St. Louis Blues score more than the Flames. That's right. The BLUES.
So...what is it? Let's ignore the continued mediocre play of Iginla for the moment -
Calgary gets precious little secondary scoring. 3rd and 4th liners Yelle, Nilson, Donovan, Simon and McCarty have scored 27 goals all year COMBINED. That's only 2 more than their struggling captain. Jordan Leopold hasn't scored in over 70 NHL contests. Even Matthew Lombardi has only managed 4 goals in 33 games this season. That means Calgary has 7 players, several of which that have modest to decent offensive talent, that have scored less goals together than 20 year old Alexander Ovechkin has scored for the horrendous Washington Capitals.
And it's not like Calgary is carried by their primary scoring either. After Iginla's 25 goals (which is a disappointment), the Flames have no one with more than 20. Amonte goes for long stretches without scoring. Langkow is relatively consistent at a goal every three games or so pace, which is decent but hardly enough to bank on. Kobasew is the picture of inconsistency - he scores 3 and then disappears from the scoresheet for 15 games. Huselius has been a pleasant surprise since we picked him up - but, like Langkow, he doesn't produce enough to make a difference every night. So, basically, Calgary has 3rd liners that produce like 4th liners (and benchwarmers) and 2nd and 1st liners that produce like 3rd liners. With the continued absence of Jarome, the Flames don't seem to have any sort of fear-inducing attack.
But Calgary has some offensive talent. It's there. But it's not being tapped. I've the sneeking suspision that the Flame's offensive lack is (at least partially) caused by systemic issues. The Flames almost never look like they know what they're doing in the opposition's end of the rink. They shoot the puck wide or into blocks more often than I can count. They're offensive systems often appear static and easily defended. There's almost never anyone in a dangerous scoring position in the slot - and if there is, the pass to him is invariably stuffed or into his skates. And the odd time a chance does rear it's head, the Flames seem so stunned by the rare occurance that they panic and flub the chance.
Of course, all of this is exacerbated by Jarome's struggles (you knew I'd have to pick this scab a little). After the Olympics I held little hope that the dominant Iggy that we knew would return. Last night's contest did little to ease my worries.
Like he has so many times this year, Iginla missed chances and disappeared for long stretches. In fact, Jarome was detrimental to the Flames come-back cause during the third last night - not only did he miss an open net (shot it wide), but he also took a lazy hooking penalty with about 4 minutes left. I guess the worst part about that is I wasn't at all surprised by it...
Positives and Negatives:
Positives:
- Dion Phaneuf. Fast, tough, impressive. Frequently the most noticable Flame on the ice.
- Robyn Regehr. Aside from his terrible decision to change in the second (lead to the Canucks first goal), had a solid night with a goal and some big hits.
- Huselius. shifty and dangerous at times. Was robbed of a goal by the post.
Negatives:
- Loss to a depleted and tired divisional opponent.
- Undisciplined. 29 minutes in penalties - many of them the stupid or lazy variety.
- Ference and Warrener. I don't know how frequently I have to mention this pairing or how often they are they are going to continue to make dumb decisions at critical times. Were the cause of the GWG against. Again.
- Jarome Iginla. Simply, startlingly, incredibly...average.
- 0 goals from Flames forwards in 2 games. Ridiculous.
- Zero killer instinct. Of course.
The bad news (which should be good news) is that we take on the St. Louis Blues next. My prediction heading into the game? Dion Phaneuf will be great.
