[Game Takes] Flames 6 Sabres 2

[Bingo]

Flames 6 Sabres 2

- Flames with 4 third period goals
- Calgary with 7 players with two or more points
- Cooley with his first win as a Flame

[Jay Random]

Good writeup, thanks (out of thanks). Especially nice job describing the Coronato goal. It reminded me of one scored against the Flames many years ago – puck hit Vernon right in the crest, bounced to the side, off the defenceman's nose, off Vernon's back and in. I forget who the Dman was, but he was the saddest man I ever saw on ice.

Sometimes you go to a hockey game and bumper pool breaks out.

[dino7c]

best third period of the season

[Itse]

4-5-1 in the last 10, huh? Also lost our title as the worst scoring team in the league to Nashville.

[Finger Cookin]

That seems more like where this team should be. 74 point pace for a full season, vs. 56 or whatever we're at now.

[Bingo]

Flames to make the playoffs ... 115 point pace (down)
Flames to not draft top 10 ... 103 point pace (up)
Flames to not draft top 5 ... 87 point pace (down)

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by Itse

4-5-1 in the last 10, huh? Also lost our title as the worst scoring team in the league to Nashville.

Originally Posted by Finger Cookin

That seems more like where this team should be. 74 point pace for a full season, vs. 56 or whatever we're at now.

Yeah, I look at the season so far in two parts:

First 10: 2-7-1, stumbled out of the gates, but the team isn't that bad
Since...: 4-6-2, 68 pt pace, which looks and feels like the team many of us expected this year (70-75 pt pace)

And IMO, that's fine. The slow start solidified the view that this is a rebuild year, and seals out fate in the bottom 5, even if we continue to play at that 70-75 pt pace the rest of the way. Or even if we play closer to an 80 pt pace the rest of the way.

I know some people are concerned that we are going to start creeping up the standings, but look at the schedule for the next 6 - I would think 4 or 5 pts in those games, maybe 6 at most. And assuming that's what happens, we would be through Thanksgiving, almost at the 30 game mark, and still in 32nd place (maybe 31 if NSH falls off a cliff)

[GioforPM]

A losing club needs to have these games every once in a while, to keep spirits up, to make players believe they can score in the future, etc. You don’t want them just thinking they’re an AHL club.

[Itse]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

Yeah, I look at the season so far in two parts:

First 10: 2-7-1, stumbled out of the gates, but the team isn't that bad
Since...: 4-6-2, 68 pt pace, which looks and feels like the team many of us expected this year (70-75 pt pace)

And IMO, that's fine. The slow start solidified the view that this is a rebuild year, and seals out fate in the bottom 5, even if we continue to play at that 70-75 pt pace the rest of the way. Or even if we play closer to an 80 pt pace the rest of the way.

I know some people are concerned that we are going to start creeping up the standings, but look at the schedule for the next 6 - I would think 4 or 5 pts in those games, maybe 6 at most. And assuming that's what happens, we would be through Thanksgiving, almost at the 30 game mark, and still in 32nd place (maybe 31 if NSH falls off a cliff)

NSH is one point above us, barely counts as falling from a tree

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by Itse

NSH is one point above us, barely counts as falling from a tree

Mind you, Nashville also has two games in hand. 32nd place while having played more games than nearly all the teams above you is pretty safely last.

[Calgary4LIfe]

Nashville probably still has a better roster on paper. Forsberg + Josi are probably two better players than the Flames currently have. O'Reilly is still a great 2-way center. Two good young guys with Evangelista and Wood too. Not sure what to make from Saros - I think it is simply what happens playing on a bad team, especially missing your #1 defencemen. Josi has been out, but was practicing with the team yesterday, and I guess we can expect him back when Nashville plays again. Hopefully he has regained his health both from the off-season (POTS) as well as whatever injury he sustained early this season.


While the Flames are doing better, I agree it is probably a combination of easier opponents + they have been playing better. At some point, Andersson gets traded, and I think this will impact them harder than most will think. He is still good defensively and solid in transition, and the Flames are very thin on defence. Bahl will have his work cut out for him when Andersson leaves, as Bahl will now have to be the anchor on his pairing. Plus, imagine if Weegar or Bahl get injured? Yikes! I also think that once Andersson gets traded, it will really take the wind out of the Flames' sails, so to speak.


If anyone else gets traded, I would expect that we will end up watching what many other fan-bases end up having to watch - what a rebuilding team looks like before they get an influx of good young players. It will be hard to watch (i.e. for those complaining about watching the Flames now, prepare yourselves!). I still think the Flames play as if they are not rebuilding - lots of effort and gumption. Execution isn't there, but aside from the tough start (that schedule didn't help matters), I would say that the Flames really do play hard most of the time. This is not what you normally see for a 32nd place team. Makes this portion of the season much more bearable as a fan.