[stemit14]

Great to get these 2 points. Will be in tough against Winnipeg tomorrow especially after losing Bahl. But this team continues to surprise. Will be a real test for the next few weeks if Bahl is out for that time. It’s tough enough for this team to out-work teams every night (which they do)… to add significant injuries up front (Zary) and on the defence (Bahl) is even more adversity to face. The way they play though, they may just continue surprising and push through.

Something important about this team is that, more often than not, they do seem to set the tone or style of the game. By that I mean, they force teams to play their game. Very tight-checking and little speed through the neutral zone. I mean that in the most positive way. It shows strong coaching and complete buy-in from the players. A team comes in and wants to out-skill the flames but the flames don’t let them. They take away so much space and are so relentless that the flames negate any potential talent deficit against teams. Obviously this may not happen every night or all game but for the vast majority of games (even ones the flames may lose), teams are forced to play a game dictated by the flames.

You go watch a Chicago game or a San Jose game or a Montreal game - it’s so much time and space out there for players on both sides. No tight checking. It’s just endless skill plays. Which can work if you have skill (Montreal has a decent amount) but doesn’t work at all if you don’t have the skill (Chicago).