[News Roundup] April 12, 2017

[MissTeeks]

THE JOHNNY AND MONY SHOW: PLAYOFF EDITION

https://www.nhl.com/flames/news/the-...on/c-288701108

Truth be told, it's a moment Sean Monahan and Johnny Gaudreau talked about many months ago.
A moment they'll live Thursday.
A return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

"We're really excited," Gaudreau detailed.
"We wanted to make the playoffs last year and didn't get the chance. This year, over the summer, we were excited about this season and excited about the new opportunity, new guys on our team and new faces around the locker-room. Ever since then we knew how important it was to get back to the playoffs.
"After we signed both our deals we knew it was going to be an exciting six years and we wanted to start it off on the right track here in the first season getting back to the playoffs and hopefully going on a little run here."

Calgary's best know they have to be Calgary's best.
"If you want to be the best you put a lot of pressure on yourself," Monahan said. "It weighs in all the time. I think that kind of stuff actually makes you better. Me and Johnny lean on one another. When you want to win as bad as this group does here, you want to be a big part of it.
"You feel that pressure.
"At the same time it's playoff hockey and it's the best time to play."

It's understandable if the duo is ready for another go-round.
"I think it's exciting for them," forward Kris Versteeg said. "They've been there one time before. I think they've had a taste of it and a taste of what the city can become and how it can rally behind people. I think they want it more.
"As big players, big moments…that's what they should want."
Big players.
Set for more big moments.
With a big experience under their belts.
"You talk all you want but experience obviously helps knowing what an NHL playoff experience is like," forward Matt Stajan said. "For those guys…we've got two rounds last time that were pretty intense and we played these guys in one of them. There aren't going to be any surprises.
"We know what to expect.
"We need everybody going and those two guys are obviously keys for us."

And, suggested Monahan, the pair is ready for it.
"We've talked about it a lot now," he said.
"That's been our goal from Day 1, since we've been together here. Once you get to playoffs anything can happen. We're taking it game by game here, shift by shift.
"This is going to be a lot of fun."

UP TO THE CHALLENGE

https://www.nhl.com/flames/news/up-t...ge/c-288690024

One pro game on his resume.
Nothing but adrenaline.
Sam Bennett's first foray into the Stanley Cup Playoffs was memorable for all the right reasons.

"I was just excited to be called up and to be around the team, and then to be thrown in it was pretty incredible," the Flames forward recounted. "I was in awe. It was an amazing feeling. It's just excitement, adrenaline. You're really just trying to control those emotions.
"And just worry about playing your game."

Thrown into the mix, the No.-4 pick in the 2014 NHL Draft dressed for 11 games and scored the first three goals of his NHL career.
"Sam was flying out there," assistant GM Craig Conroy said. "He was in on forechecks, finishing checks … anything you could ask him to do he was doing. And then when you think back, it's just one of those where you're like, 'he didn't even get to play any games and was hurt all year,' but he didn't miss a beat.
"He was one of our better players."

Much of the same is expected of him when the puck drops on Game 1 in Calgary's first-round series against the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday.
"He's an in-your-face kind of player," centre Matt Stajan said. "He can play that type of style when he needs to. He's got some skill and speed. He's got that grit. We've seen a lot of that this year with some of his fights. We need him to play that way.
"This is the type of series and time of year when we need that extra little grit and Benny's definitely a guy that shows he has that.
"I'm sure we'll see it."

Conroy certainly predicts it.
"He's a playoff player," Conroy said. "When you watch it, this is exactly the way he plays. He's going to come and he brings that emotion and he's going to ramp it up. You know it's going to be hard. They have a big team over there. You just expect it.
"For his size, he can hit as hard as anybody in the league.
"He finishes checks, he's got good speed. He's like a little dog on a bone when it comes to the puck. You can't get it away from him. I expect him to have a huge series. I mean, he's looking forward. This is a challenge.
"It seems like he rises to all those challenges."

Will Calgary Flames pave way to paradise or get put out in parking lot?

http://calgaryherald.com/sports/hock...in-parking-lot

Driving up to the Honda Center parking lot on a warm, sunny Tuesday afternoon, visitors sporadically navigated their way through a series of pylons before being greeted by a gaggle of orange-clad ice girls. Manning a pair of tents mistaken by visitors as a rock chip repair stop, the Anaheim Ducks staffers revealed it was a car flag rally.
When a curious Calgarian turned down an offer to buy an orange flag, the attendant handed him a Ducks t-shirt and sunglasses anyway, perhaps feeling sorry for someone they assume will have no one to cheer for after Round 1.
It stands to reason locals see the Flames as a mere speed bump on the way to the second round.
Seeing their home squad win an NHL record 27 games in a row against the Flames tends to build one’s confidence.

The biggest chance the Flames have to knock down the larger-than-life division champs will come a few hundred meters away, where a steal in either of the first two games could turn the complexion of the series on a dime.
“Of course, I understand what people are saying – we haven’t won in there in a long time – but there’s got to be a first,” said Flames assistant general manager Craig Conroy.
“It’s always nice to come in as an underdog because if you win one of those first two, they’re on their heels. That’s what happened in Detroit.”

Snap it early and all bets are off – we’d have a series.
Michael Frolik said exactly that on Monday.
Vowing to value discipline above all else, perhaps the Flames could take advantage of the Ducks’ overzealousness or unproven netminding to strike rare fear into the hosts early. The could then hold on with the type of help Brian Elliott has offered up the last few months in their own net.
It would open the door for the Flames to return to a stark-crazy mad Calgary crowd with home-ice advantage and a newfound belief in themselves.
The city would go wild.
Make no mistake, the Flames are already a confident bunch and have every reason to be.

What stands in their way now is a group of Ducks inflated to appear larger than life for longer than most can remember.
Knocking them down to size Thursday or Saturday with a monumental opening is clearly the Flames’ goal.
“I was watching the show on 30 for 30 on the Detroit Pistons winning their second title, they hadn’t won in Seattle in 15 years,” said Conroy, forever the optimist. “They went in there and won three. I’m not saying we’re going to win three. But eventually you’re going to do it. Bill Laimbeer said it best, ‘Who cares about that stuff?’ That’s the attitude you have to have.
“This is now.”

Ferland recalls most exciting time of hockey life


http://calgaryherald.com/sports/hock...of-hockey-life

A father now, who recently celebrated an engagement and three years of sobriety, Micheal Ferland still marvels at how far he’s come since addressing his alcohol-fueled anger.
And while there have been plenty of significant milestones, celebrations and triumphs along the way, the 24-year-old Flames winger doesn’t hesitate when asked about the most exciting time of his life.
“The playoffs two years ago, for sure,” he smiled.
“It was just totally different. I just put everything on the line. Our whole team wants to get back to that and experience those totally different type of games.”

As fate would have it, he’ll get another crack at Bieksa and his Ducks, setting the table for more fireworks.
Expect their interaction to be a major storyline once again, even though Ferland refused to comment at all on it Monday.
“I just tried to hit everything that moved,” smiled the six-foot-two, 208-pound wrecking ball of a 2015 playoff mission that saw him become a household name in Calgary at the tail end of his first, abbreviated NHL season.
“Obviously it’s tough to go out and get seven or eight hits a game, but I’m for sure going to be more physical when the time comes.”
The time has come, meaning all bets are off on Ferland’s conscious decision to suppress his wild side.
“It’s hard on the body, trying to hit a guy and trying to stay out there for the rest of your shift,” said Ferland, whose conditioning has also come a long way since 2015.
“Sometimes they’ll ask why I come off and I tell all my linemates, ‘sometimes you don’t realize how much it takes out of you to go put everything you have into a hit to try to put somebody through the boards.’
“But playoffs are a whole different story – you’re playing with so much adrenaline, the fans are right into it.”

“You still feel like there’s another gear for him,” said Flames assistant GM Craig Conroy, who relishes the thought of Ferland returning to beast mode.
“I almost like when he gets hit because he gets (upset) and on the edge. That’s when he’s at his best.
“He needs to play his game, be a physical presence and shoot the puck. He’s got one of the better shots in the room and he gives those guys space.”
But can he give himself and the team the boost of adrenaline he provided against the Canucks?
“You can’t expect eight hits a game for the regular season but in playoffs everyone ramps it up,” said Conroy.

Bigger and better than 2015: This year's Calgary Flames brace for heavy, physical Anaheim Ducks

http://calgaryherald.com/sports/hock...layoffs-battle

When the Calgary Flames qualified for the 2015 National Hockey League post-season, they were one of the circuit’s daintiest outfits, tipping the scales at 193 pounds on average.
Johnny Gaudreau grinned.
“I might be to blame for a bit of that, two years ago,” the Flames forward said with a chuckle.
There were myriad reasons why Calgary did not advance past the Anaheim Ducks in the second round that spring, one of which was the fact they can’t seem to snap the Honda Center Curse and produce a win in that building.
The other could have been attributed to their overall size as, back then, the Ducks were one of the heaviest outfits.
But that was then.
And…
“I didn’t weigh as much as I do now,” said Gaudreau, igniting a round of laughter from media on Tuesday at the Scotiabank Saddledome.

“We picked up some bigger defencemen and some big bodies up front,” Gaudreau said. “Anaheim is a big, physical team and that’s what we need, those big guys to play their game for us.”
The overall physicality of the playoffs plus the physicality of the regular season series leave no questions as to what is going to be the theme of first-round Western Conference showdown.
But considering there were a total of 106 penalty minutes in the third period of the last game — a 3-1 Flames loss at Honda Center on April 4 — calmer heads will prevail, according to netminder Brian Elliott.
“It’s a little back-and-forth (with the Ducks),” Elliott said. “They’ve got a lot of guys that like to talk and get under your skin. But I think the way we play best is sticking with it and not getting rattled and moving onto the next play.”

“I think we’re better equipped,” Flames general manager Brad Treliving said. “We’ve got young people who have been through this experience. I think our team is a little more mature than it was. You don’t have as many people going through it for the first time … you can talk all you want about playoffs, but you have to experience it, and we’ve got guys in there that know what it’s about.”
And on top of it, heading into the playoffs, they’re playing better hockey than they were in 2015.
“The first year, I don’t think we deserved it as much as we do this year,” Gaudreau said. “That first year, a lot of comebacks, a lot of — I don’t want to say luck — but a lot of good opportunities to come back in games and it helped us get there. This year, we have an all-around better game. We deserve to be here this year. We know that.
“We know how important these first few games in Anaheim are.”

[MissTeeks]

Calgary Flames lean on valuable NHL playoff experience … and the (grumpy) veterans
http://calgaryherald.com/sports/hock...rumpy-veterans

Kris Versteeg cleared his throat on Tuesday and did his best to offer advice as the Calgary Flames made their final preparations at the Scotiabank Saddledome before travelling to Anaheim later in the afternoon.
Sounding like a man who’s played 89 National Hockey League playoff games, he commented on the buzz in the city and how infectious it can be on a team.
Then, sounding like Statler and Waldorf — the grumpy old men of Muppets fame — Versteeg gave his two cents about his daily commute to the office.
“I saw (Flames) flags on McLeod and 12th. But I still don’t like that intersection,” he deadpanned, much to the howling of the assembled media. “That light at McLeod is only about 20 seconds, so a lot of cars pile up there and I’d like them to figure that out right now … whoever runs that. That’d be great.”
Hey, the two-time Stanley Cup champion has earned the right to flex his veteran leadership.
But the savvy, experienced Versteeg also knows how to keep it light at this time of the year.
“I don’t know if I’m teaching lessons,” said the Lethbridge native and former Chicago Blackhawk, shortly after one member of the media referred to him as, jokingly, “The Professor.”
“These guys all know what they need to do. In the end, you ask each hockey player and they know what to do … it’s about going out there and handling the pressure and the momentum as best you can.”

Two years ago, Johnny Gaudreau had no idea how to handle the NHL playoff pressure.
Looking back, he admits that his stomach was doing flip-flops most of the time.
“That first series, the first round, I was nervous every single game,” said Gaudreau, who now, like those who were around in 2015, have 11 games of post-season experience in three NHL seasons. “Now this is the time to learn from that experience … we have a little more experience throughout our whole team now, I think.”
He’s not wrong.
This current group has a combined 474 NHL playoff games of experience, compared with the 2015 edition of Flames, which had 275 post-season clashes under their belts. Glen Gulutzan had a few playoff veterans — and leaders on the team — address the team on Tuesday, including Versteeg, Troy Brouwer, Michael Frolik, Flames captain Mark Giordano, Matt Bartkowski and Brian Elliott.
“Those guys spoke (Tuesday) and kind of put us on a path, telling the guys what they thought was important when they went on their runs,” Gulutzan said. “That’s part of it. The other part is executing.”

With the entire city of Calgary shifting into National Hockey League playoff mode, car flags, banners and signs dotted the entire downtown, this team feels that — experience or not — they’re ready to deliver.
“A lot of people have the red out and their Flames flags. People are coming up to you and wishing you luck,” said Flames rookie Matthew Tkachuk. “It’s a fun environment to be in right now.”
And the games?
Tkachuk has heard the hype.
“Everything is so much faster (during playoffs),” he said. “People are flying around and doing everything they can to make something happen for their team.
“Momentum is huge in playoffs.”

Flames goaltender Jon Gillies riding NHL post-season wave

http://www.calgarysun.com/2017/04/10...st-season-wave

In the wake of Chad Johnson’s injury, Jon Gillies was recalled last Wednesday from the Stockton Heat to fill in while the Calgary Flames wrapped up their regular season in California.
Then, the 23-year-old netminder was dispatched back to the Heat on Saturday, only to be recalled by the Flames on Sunday.
While it seems like a complicated travel itinerary, there was actually some method to this madness as Gillies was sent back to the team’s American Hockey League affiliate to help out with Stockton’s final playoff push. Gillies made 31 saves in a 5-2 win over the San Jose Barracuda.
And, hey, Gillies — an aspiring professional — is OK with whatever the Flames want.
“I knew what the plan was,” he said on Monday, temporarily occupying Johnson’s stall in the Calgary Flames’ locker room. “It was just going to be a quick swap. We were really close to playoffs in Stockton and I was happy to do that.
“At the end of the day, I just play wherever I’m told to play. It doesn’t bother me.”

Having just broke into the professional game, technically, this season (2015-16 he underwent hip surgery and was limited to only seven AHL appearances), the experience of being around a post-season-focused locker-room is an educational experience.
“It’s a lot of fun to be a part of and you learn how to be a pro and the best pro possible, ” Gillies said. “I’m just trying to be a sponge.”
Like, for example, being around a veteran netminder like Elliott and watching his work ethic, compete level, and preparation is invaluable.
“He’s a guy that’s been around a long time and has a lot of success in this league,” Gillies said. “You see the stuff he’s doing before practice and what he’s doing to get his body prepared. You just try to take little bits and pieces and apply it into your own routine.”