Inconsistent goaltending at the start of a season is nothing to freak out about. Smith will improve, and I bet that Rittich pushes this year too.
The bad:
Monahan and Gaudreau - so rarely are they bad though. Blues are good at suffocating lines at times.
Andersson - I found his decision making slow, almost like he was second-guessing himself out there.
The good:
Bennett: That last goal wouldn't have happened without him, and that was a nice set-up in the first for Neal. Good game practically every shift.
Rittich: Not easy to come into a game and face some high-pressure shots like he did. Closed the door and gave the Flames a chance at a comeback.
Brodie: Rarely turned the puck over, and just got the puck out efficiently.
Yeah, we lost, but consider this:
Anyone here feel that the top pairing on Defence looks worse this year than last? Anybody feel that the 2nd pairing is worse than last? Hamonic is out, but Hanifin-Stone have been fine. Giordano and Brodie are once again downright elite.
Blues are a very good team that skate fast and have a lot of physical and talented forwards. Their only weakness is in net, and Allen just decided he was going to have himself a great game. He does that - Allen is a top-tier goalie regularly throughout every season, but it is his horrible inconsistency that makes him a relatively poor starter. Tonight he was on, and with the Blues doing a strong job on the top line, it was enough to sink the Flames.
Neal and Ryan scored - depth scoring came through tonight, so there's another plus in an otherwise losing effort.
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