[PGT] Flames win Game 1 vs Dallas 3-2

[GranteedEV]

Originally Posted by nobles_point

You can’t get better at zone exits, driving play, & creating plays off of the rush by starting ice time in the offensive end.

That's wonderful on paper, but

1) Most shifts start start on the fly. Faceoffs AKA "zone starts" are only a fraction of that. I think people read too much into this stat in general.

2) Even players that "zone start" heavily in the offensive zone still spend a lot of the game in situations where they need to backcheck, make zone exits, drive play, and create plays off the rush. Consider the second Dillon Dube goal last night for instance. It started at the far left side of the neutral zone when Bennett intercepted a pass on an attempted entry, then he handed it off to Forbort in the D-zone, who reversed the puck over to Gustafsson on the right side, who made a clean pass to Dube for the zone exit, where Dube started a play off the rush. But on paper, the zone start stats wouldn't pick up on any of this.

Anyways what I'm trying to say is, I don't think getting a few more defensive zone faceoffs will suddenly make anyone a better defensive player or that line any more effective in their 200 foot game. I do think it's a different role, but you are what you are.

[CGY12]

I'm all for the number one line being more defensively responsible and learning how to play the two way game. I just think that they need to be given a few more offensive zone starts when Ward has the chance to make a line change. I honestly don't think they had one in the 2nd period or 3rd. The line only mustered up 3 shots between the three of them. Get that line buzzing and full of confidence against some of the upper echelon teams in the west, with the way the rest of the group is playing, they could make a run.

[Mattman]

Originally Posted by schteve_d

I'm pretty much ok with whatever the team is doing if the results keep coming.

In this series we are only one game in and I believe that was a Dallas home game. I assume the next is as well. It will be interesting to see Ward with the last change in game three and see if he sticks to this.

This.

St. Louis was probably the first team I've seen in my lifetime win a cup with just pure depth at every level of the game, albeit they had stellar goaltending, but did not have just one superstar carry the team.

I guess that could be said for every champion team, but the Flames are playing solid right now as a team and no one is a passenger.