It was retro night in Calgary.
No not that night every year when the Flames deem a night of costume and garb, the Saddledome filling with leg warmers and acid wash jeans. Tonight I mean true retro night, back to a previous era in the NHL when the flood gates would open and teams struggling would turn bad nights into horrific nights. Think the Colorado Rockies, the Washington Capitals, and the Winnipeg Jets, the easy marks from the early 1980s.
Today the game is different. A team struggling still hangs in. Systems rule the day and everything gets held in check.
But tonight it was throwback night as the Panthers, exhausted from a long road trip literally mailed it in. And the Flames just kept coming and coming and coming, and well coming to the tune of a 6-0 shellacking on Sadledome ice.
The other throwback element in tonight’s game? Individual goal scoring, with Sam Bennett popping 4 goals, something we haven’t seen from young players in Calgary since Joe Nieuwendyk lit it up in his first few seasons.
Quite a send off for a five game road trip.
The Flow
Not much point in breaking this one down period by period, as the Flames dominated from opening to close.
They score four in the first, then add singles in both the second and third period to just keep it rolling. Sam Bennett scores three in the first; #1 on a quick release off a Jiri Hudler backhand pass. #2 he loses the handle coming through the slot but has it get by Luongo. #3 he picks up an Engellend rebound and deftly puts it off the bar on a backhand. Oddly enough the only first period goal to break up the Bennett party was a Gaudreau pass intended for … Sam Bennett is pushed back to Gaudreau by Huberdeau and Gaudreau finishes it off.
The second features more chances for the Flames, this time on Al Montoya as Luongo is chased and the backup stands tall. The only goal in the period was scored by Mason Raymond who deflects in a David Jones centering pass on a lazy play by the Panthers. Not sure Hiller made a save in the period but I think I might have seen him 4 times.
The third was finish it off mode with not a whole lot happening. The Panthers add 6 shots to their total making their nightly tally 15 and Hiller is forced to make a few saves. Hudler yields the puck to Bennett on the blueline with under two minutes left and he undresses Petrovic before beating Montoya with a slick backhand, the kid has four. Crazy.
Unreal, 6-0 final for the Flames.
Three Stars
1.Sam Bennett: Guy gets a goal, a game winner he has a shot at a star, maybe the first. Add another and you’re pretty much a shoe in. Hat trick, well no brainer, first star material every time out. Four? Maybe you should be all 3?
2.Dougie Hamilton : Two assists and a milestone of his own with 100 points in his NHL career. The young defender just keeps getting better and better.
3.Michael Backlund: Another great night for the Flames center as he quietly goes about his business. Picked up an assist and was +3 for the Flames.
Big Save
Al Montoya had a tough start to his night when he took over for Roberto Luongo to start the second period. The Flames on a powerplay came right after it, and Montoya in succession stopped Ferland, Gaudreau and then Hamilton in an early barrage.
The Goat
Tempting to hammer Roberto Luongo given the old rivalry with the Canucks, but I sort of started to like the guy with his classic twitter account so I’ll pass (plus he didn’t get a lot of help). I’m going with former Red Deer Rebel Alex Petrovic who was sliced wide open by the Flames to the tune of -4 including losing his shorts to Bennett on the Calgary rookie’s fourth goal.
Mr. Clutch
Jiri Hudler. Picked up two assists in his return to the lineup after a groin injury, both on Sam Bennett goals. With Ferland fitting in well with Gaudreau and Monahan, Hudler gelling with Bennett would be huge to fill out the Flames top six.
Odds and Ends
That felt a lot like the Joe Nieuwendyk days in Calgary, a young player with all kinds of skill doing something that you just don’t expect. I was certainly on board through the “drought” that Bennett was doing a lot of things right. Unlike the Rico Fata, Daniel Tkaczuk, Oleg Saprykin, Chuck Kobasew days I wasn’t worried that a lack of production from a top prospect meant career third liner and not the guy expected on draft day. He looked good. He was good. The eventual production would be good. However, I certainly didn’t see four goals and five in two games as a way of righting the ship. A dynamic offensive talent. Has he served notice? Would sure be interesting for the second half if the Flames suddenly have another high danger threat on their roster. … As I alluded in the opening, the game was a lot like one of those 80s games against the weaklings of the 21 team NHL. Back in those days if you had the Rockies coming in you were thinking 9-1 or 10-0 scores and they often happened. The Panthers were spent, and the Flames were full marks for taking advantage fully. … Loved the give and take between Ferland and Gaudreau on that top line in the past few games. Sean Monahan is a lot of things but he can’t play that pitch and catch game with Gaudreau the way a Hudler can. He’s the two way grey matter, and the shooter when it comes to the slot but not the guy that can bob and weave with the little wizard. It sure looks like Ferland can which only adds to his Lucic upside appeal. … What a great opportunity to work your way back into the cage for Jonas Hiller. Five shots through one period, nine through two, and 15 overall is the best way to shake rust. Wonder who gets the start on Saturday in Edmonton? … Speaking of shots, with 15 against tonight and only 17 against the Sharks the Flames electric when it comes to pace of play in the last two games. Is that a coming out party or isolated? Just like the Panthers, the young Flames could turn the corner on a dime.
Next Up
With the road trip completed at 2-2, the Flames hit out on a huge five game road trip against beatable teams. Game one pits the Flames against the Oilers in Edmonton on Saturday night, game time 8pm HNIC.
Lines:
Johnny Gaudreau – Sean Monahan – Micheal Ferland
Sam Bennett – Mikael Backlund – Jiri Hudler
Mason Raymond – Marcus Granlund- David Jones
Brandon Bollig – Matt Stajan – Josh Jooris
Mark Giordano – T.J. Brodie
Kris Russell – Dougie Hamilton
Derryk Engellend – Dennis Wideman
Jonas Hiller
