I think the next one we will see how much work Sutter still has to do. The Ward flames after a 3 game win streak playing against the same team would #### the bed spectacularly next game. At game 4 that new coach smell is also wearing off.
Looking forward to it.
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Win is a win but I think tonight we saw some of the old bad habits creep back into their game. They were really passive in the last few minutes and were very fortunate. Still three straight wins despite Tkachuk, Backlund, and Gaudreau struggling mightily is good. Starting to get a little worried about the Gio and Anderson pairing. They have some awful stretches at times.
Agreed. The win was well deserved, and they were the better team, but I thought that was the most passive we've seen them under Sutter (bot all night, just sometimes). Lots of fumbling the puck, lots of waiting for someone else to go get it, too much standing still, and too much east-west hockey - especially from Gio/Andersson.
Nonetheless, a tremendous effort, and a great job on Mcdavid - though you'd never know it listening to Hrudy.
Of course the transition will take time, we all knew that. And this game will provide plenty of coaching opportunities for Sutter. I expect we'll be better Wednesday. And we were already better than the Oilers tonight.
Impressive game. Tippett is a really good coach and has the Oilers transitioning very quickly as well, even without McDavid on the ice. They are a bad team with a great coach, and that's why I think the Flames didn't look as good against them tonight a they did against Montreal. I can't believe people in Edmonton wanted him fired.
With that being said, Flames won! I think they were the better team through most of the game. Starting to really like Ritchie more than I should. Guy is non-stop compete, and his hands are pretty good too. I think he is a really smart player - much like Lucic does, he gets on the right side of the puck all the time. When he gets the puck, he makes really nice passes that you (or at least, I) didn't expect from him. I also really love how he stuck up for Kylington. Most games, the Flames let that go unanswered - not this season, and I think that's important. I don't hate Khaira - I don't think he is a dirty player, and I think he plays the game the right way, and good on him for answering the bell. Hope he is not injured, but I also think the league does look at that hit.
I thought the Flames had some 'lulls' in their play tonight - weren't as hard on the forecheck as they have been, and allowed McDavid a bit too much room at times. A bit more of a sloppy game in my opinion than the last few, and I wonder how much of that was the adjustments by the Oilers, and how much of that was the Flames still adjusting themselves under Darryl.
I expect as the games go on, the Flames will just get better. This is a very different type of hockey than they have played before. They haven't skated this hard since Hartley, and they haven't ever played this structured either. So far, so perfect! 3-0 to star this era!
Lucic, Backlund, Hanifin, Tanev, Ritchie, Dube, Kylington and Monahan were all very noticeable tonight. Monahan is developing a bit more bite to his game - loved him fighting back in the scrum this game.
HFOil is so funny. they think Tippett isn’t an NHL coach when he’s the only reason they have the record they do.
I noticed Monahan defensively a lot. He’s overmatched against stronger guys but he’s playing good position and he’s intercepting a lot of neutral zone pass attempts. He also is responsible on D pinches. That’s what gets you a star in Sutters book.
I can’t say enough about Lucic. I don’t notice his lack of speed any more at all. He’s a presence out there.
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