A goalie chasing a goalie, chasing a goalie.
Miikka Kiprusoff looking to take the single season win mark from Martin Brodeur who was looking much further down the road to the all time win mark of Patrick Roy. Someone had to come up short, and in this case it was the visitor, Kiprusoff not able to match the heroics of Brodeur in a 3-2 loss.
The Flames have now lost three in a row on this seven game trek, putting their record at 2-3-0 heading into Detroit in attempt to make things right.
On The Line
A non conference game usually has little to do with “on the line” but with two straight losses in winnable cities, the Flames need to right the ship in order to hold off the streaking Canucks.
The Flow
The Flames did well by themselves in the first, turning a first period powerplay opportunity into a momentum shift that had them the better team through 20 minutes. A David Moss spin around pass to Olli Jokinen had the road squad up by one.
An answer by the Devils was expected and they tied the score shorthanded with a shot that squirted through Kiprusoff’s pads tying things at one. A tight period for the most part, the Devils went ahead when Rolston converted Old Devil home week by taking a Shanahan rebound and twisting the rebound past Kiprusoff.
The Devils made things tough to reach when a four hour rebound (ok, it seemed liked four hours) finally resulted in a Zach Parise put the home squad up two. Curtis Glencross with no time on the clock finished the scoring with no time left on the clock.
Three Stars
1. Jamie Langenbrunner: Thought this guy was done a long time ago, but man was I wrong. Goal and an assist for the captain.
2. Martin Brodeur: Schooled Mr. Kiprusoff in this one, as Brodeur climbs toward Patrick Roy’s all time win total. Simply the best.
3. Brian Rolston: Scored the key go ahead goal in the second period to set the pace for the Devils.
Big Save
Pick any of Brodeur’s third period saves. Pad, Chest, Glove, Pad, Chest, Pad, Pad, Glove. … name it. The guy is as agile as a 22 year old.
Big Hit
Cory Sarich caught Bryan Gionta near the Flames bench with a solid crunching near the Flames bench in the game’s best hit.
The Goat
Calgary special teams. A short handed goal against, a powerplay goal for the Devils … clearly the difference in an otherwise solid push by a road weary Flames squad. The odd man teams can’t be a give away to win in today’s NHL.
Mr. Clutch
Brodeur in a walk … I was amazed to see how fast he through out limbs towards pucks given his age and his recent injury. Out played Kiprusoff by a mile and a half.
Odds and Ends
A great start to the trip is now an under .500 trip with two stops left for the Grey Hound. Next up the Stanley Cup Champs in a city that never has the Flames winning. Toronto at the end might be a gimme, but a point in Detroit is the crux for a .500 trip. …. First line looked better tonight, and I was glad to see Keenan keep the third line together even with Daymond Langkow back. … Bottom line, if Kiprusoff squeezes that short handed goal the Flames win. … With only Peters left on the roster of AHL ilk the Flames should find more consistency going forward, they’ll need it. … Relax Calgary fans, the chasing Canucks will have many nights like last night in Los Angeles.
Next Up
Calgary enters the “Death Zone” to take on the Wings on Thursday, game time 5:30pm MST on Sportsnet. Don’t count on a McElhinney start.
Lines (To Start):
Cammalleri – Jokinen – Iginla
Glencross – Conroy – Moss
Lundmark – Langkow – Boyd
Nystrom – Peters – Peters
Regehr – Aucoin
Leopold – Phaneuf
Sarich – Vandermeer
