The Flames took some significant steps backwards last night in their 4-1 loss to the Anaheim Might Ducks. Calgary managed to squander two points to a slumping team (without their top center in Sergei Federov) by replicating a number of the issues Flames fans are becoming all to familiar with this year:
- Sluggish start. No goals in the first period, and down 2-0 by the end of the second. What is it going to take to get the Flames to play an inspired opening frame?
- Lack of offense. 1-7 on the PP and only 1 even strength goal in the last 3 games. Wasting 6 PP opportunities against the worst PK in the league is telling.
- Terrible penalty killing. The Ducks finished the night 3-6 on the PP. The PK hasn't been a concern for awhile, but it clearly let the team down last night. Big time.
Other concerns:
- Leopold still without a single point. Eleven games and counting.
- Players like Shean Donovan and Marcus Nilson who are expected to chip in offensively on occassion have been near invisible in that department all season thus far. Between the two of them they have 1 goal total so far.
- The Flames penchant for losing games they should win. See losses to Phoenix, Dallas, Minnesota and now Anaheim. Calgary is in a highly competitive division and can't afford to keep throwing away valuable points.
- Despite rules against obstruction and interference being tightly enforced, Calgary has yet to score more than 3 goals in a game and only has 25 goals in 11 games so far. Compare this to teams like Toronto who have score 9 goals in a single game. This is especially shameful for a team that boasts one of the games top goal-getters in Jarome Iginla.
Positives...?
- Few, besides Iginla scoring. And hitting the post. And fighting. Sounds like he's beginning to turn it on. Now if the team could just remember how to forecheck with intensity (for a full 60 minutes), make crisp passes in the neutral zone and finish on some of their chances, we'll be set...
