[TheScorpion]

That game was a lot of fun to watch live. Some of my impressions:

- Gaudreau is so much fun to watch when he's on, and tonight, he sure was. He was dancing all around the ice and really stuck with the play. I loved his extra effort on his second goal.
- That game was the best I've ever seen Sam Bennett play live, and I was in attendance when he scored four goals. He was just phenomenal. He moved the puck well, and just meshed perfectly with Johnny. Love it!
- Ferland was fine. He scored a goal, which is always a plus. Not too physical, but it wasn't like he was shying away from rough areas -- he was involved in the odd scrum here and there.
- Jankowski was absolutely flying. He did every little thing perfectly. It'll be a crying shame if he doesn't make the team out of camp.
- Tyler Wotherspoon was awfully impressive on the bottom pair. He even looked good on the powerplay -- his shot is surprisingly good. I like his chances to make the team out of camp, likely as the 7, but perhaps even as the 6.
- Mike Smith plays quite deep in his crease, but he tracks the puck well and made all the right saves tonight, even if his save percentage was south of .900. The two shots which beat him both deserved to.
- Travis Hamonic was downright unnoticeable tonight, in a good way. He really is a true stay-at-home defenseman, sort of in the mold of a more skilled Deryk Engelland -- not afraid to use the body, but also a decent-enough puck-mover. I found that his more conservative playing style really allowed Brodie to take more chances with the puck and join more rushes, which was great to see.
- Matt Stajan was not good tonight. It seemed like the plays just recursively died on his stick. One such play sticks out from the first period -- Curtis Lazar made a really cool play at the red line on the right side of the ice, receiving a stretch pass from a defender and deflecting it right onto Stajan's tape with his skate, and Stajan brought the puck into the offensive zone on a 2-on-1 with Brouwer and promptly gave the puck away with a terrible attempt at a backhand pass. That was Stajan's night in a nutshell. Jankowski clearly has the leg up on him for the #4C spot.
- Tanner Glass was surprisingly effective in his role tonight. He never seemed out-of-place in terms of skating or offensive ability, and he definitely got involved in the rough stuff when needed. Zac Rinaldo is a tough customer, and Glass handled him with ease. I wouldn't be surprised to see Glass handed a contract, just for depth purposes -- although by no means am I endorsing him playing on opening night or any substantial minutes for the Flames during the season.
- Troy Brouwer seemed to have been supplanted as the "big body" on the first powerplay unit by Ferland tonight. Instead, he filled in on the second unit, and definitely played well. Brouwer seems rejuvenated to start the season, which is definitely a big plus.
- Morgan Klimchuk was okay. He is strong on the puck and a good two-way player, but I can't see him playing in the NHL this year except on the odd call-up, perhaps.
- Among the more unnoticeable players tonight: Hunter Shinkaruk (the most notable play of his being just pounded in the face by Lawson Crouse over and over); Garnet Hathaway (I think I noticed #21 on the ice like three times total in the game, and two of those were just me looking out for the number change); and Curtis Lazar (other than the aforementioned skate pass to Stajan in the first, he was largely invisible).