You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have the facts of life. The facts of life.
There’s a time you got to go and show you’re growin’ now you know about the facts of life. The facts of life.
When the world never seems to be living up to your dreams, and suddenly you’re finding out the facts of life are all about you. You.
It takes a lot to get ’em right, when you’re learning the facts of life…
So what are the facts? Well basically, the fact is the Flames are not a very good hockey team this season. But that in itself is a fact of life. Young teams will commonly find themselves taking a step back before they can take the leap forward requisite of a Stanley Cup contender.
Last year the Flames learned to believe in themselves even when they were down and out. This year they’re learning that if you continuously put yourself in the position of down and out — well — you’ll end up down and out more often than not.
They’ve been unpredictable as of late. A sluggish game against the slumping Panthers started the road trip on the wrong foot. A better effort two nights effort wielded similar results to a sleeping powerhouse in the Lightning.
But just one day later they pulled out a victory against the capital Caps. So what to expect against a dangerous Blackhawks squad on Sunday night? Pretty much exactly what was witnessed tonight in the Windy city. Despite the odd flurry of offense the Flames were blown right out of town by a superior BlackHawks team. And so they’ll limp home to lick their wounds and continue to learn some more about the facts of life.
The facts of life.
On The Line
A chance to finish an unimpressive road trip at a more impressive .500. When the hole is already this big, every shovelful buries the team that much deeper.
The Flow
Another slow start for the Flames. But Karri Ramo, making his 8th consecutive start after being recalled from Stockton, looked solid in the early going. Shots were 9-1 Hawks at one point, before settling at 10-4 at periods end with the score still deadlocked at zeros.
The Flames opening up the scoring early in the second frame. A Kris Russell centering pass was directed toward the net, and David Jones would shovel a rebound home. But 1:55 would be all that was needed to put the Flames to bed tonight as the Hawks rallied for three straight goals quicker than Mrs. Garrett typically doled out her motherly, problem-solving wisdom to those rapscallion girls. First it was Kane, extending his goal scoring streak to seven games, and his point streak to a number higher than I’ve learned to count. Than it was Hossa, using the Flames to melt his cold streak, potting only his second of the season. Finally Panarin joined the party with his sixth of the season, only significant because it forced me to learn how to spell his name, which should prove useful as this guy will be a name in the NHL for a long time.
The third opened with a frenetic pace. There was some big saves by Scott Darling. Some near misses and posts. And some reverberate chances for the Blackhawks. But ultimately it was all for naught as the nets would stay unfilled until Toews found an empty one late to seal the victory. 4-1 Hawks.
Three Stars
- Artemi Panarin: I had to learn his first name too. Impressive player nonetheless.
- Patrick Kane: Wondering if the legal complications ignited extra motivation this year. He’s been very impressive.
- Matt Stajan: Does he deserve a star for creating chances? Or lose one for failing to deliver? He had a tertiary assist on the opener, and he’s deserving of a star on this night.
Big Save
Ramo would make a series of fish-like saves in the game. I originally miswrote “lake a series of fish-like saves” which I now find humorous. I think credit goes to Scott Darling though, going post to post early in the third with the toe to thwart the Flames comeback efforts.
Big Hit
No thundering checks came to mind, so once again lets reference Ramo and his butt hitting the ice on many a saves.
The Goat
Ramo and his aquatic goaltending style. No just kidding on this one. He’s actually been decent in this stretch of eight games, rolling out a .500 record. The flames are just not playing well enough as a team this season. I’d like to go full Oprah Winfrey giveaway on them when handing out Goat status.
Mr. Clutch
Ramo and his flipper tenacity? Kidding again. Hossa broke out of a slump today, so props to him. The Flames are pretty clutch at ending cold streaks for opposing players.
Odds and Ends
Kris Russell has 67 blocked shots this season to lead the NHL, 14 more than his next closest adversary! Which I’m pretty sure is the Shooter tutor in the Air Canada Centre when Jonathan Bernier has to miss another practise… Gaudreau recieving more comparisons to Patrick Kane prior to this one. If he turns out to be a similar player on the ice, and a different person off the ice, then wow, do the Flames have a phenomenal cornerstone for the franchise… Why the Facts of Life reference? Maybe because their play this year is reminiscent of a poorly produced 80’s sitcom. Or maybe because I’m missing the glory days of the mid to late 80’s. Or maybe because I caught an episode recently on at 5 am, and the theme song is kind of catchy. It’s true though, the Flames and their fans will be learning a lot about the facts of life this season, notice how it’s not capitalized, referring to lessons on growing up and not the television show… thank goodness!
Next Up
The Flames return home to host Mike Cammalleri and the New Jersey Devils, puck drop 7 pm MST on Sportsnet West.
Lines (To Start):
Johnny Gaudreau – Sean Monahan – Jiri Hudler
Sam Bennett – Mikael Backlund – Michael Frolik
Joe Colborne – Matt Stajan – David Jones
Brandon Bollig – Derek Grant – Micheal Ferland
Mark Giordano – TJ Brodie
Kris Russell – Dougie Hamilton
Deryk Engelland – Dennis Wideman
Karri Ramo
