Don't get the sky is falling crowd. That was a good game. Flames showed some rust this game with pucks bouncing around and passes missing by a touch - that makes you look and play slow. Gaudreau wouldn't miss that set-up normally - maybe it would have been a goal, maybe not, but that's ordinarily never a miss.
It is annoying playing the Oilers - you outplay them and out-chance them, and McDavid gets a few goals. I read somewhere in the GT (forgot who you are) saying you shouldn't pay Gaudreau and Tkachuk elite money since they can't score like the other team's elite players - that's a high bar. Show me two other players that keep up with McDavid and Draisaitl. Also, the alternative is rebuild. That's fine with me too, but it isn't going to happen.
Gudbranson was good this game. I know he went for the big hit early, but I would have liked to see him push his weight around a bit more throughout the game (though him knocking Puljujarvi down was nice). Kassian and Nurse didn't show much fear tonight, and I felt that they initiated more than the Flames. Also, Monahan has to engage a bit more and not just skate away every time, especially when it is obvious he isn't getting the call (WTF? How did Kassian not get a double there? High hit, holding the stick/having two sticks, but only gets called for the roughing with Zadorov?).
Flames are still on their way to being a different team. We won't know what they really are until 15 or 20 games in. Sky isn't falling tonight. Let's see how this plays out. Better than moaning and complaining all the time anyway.
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