Through five games and a .500 record there was lots to like in the Calgary Flames overall game. A suggestion for better times ahead, and perhaps an argument that maybe just maybe they deserved a better fate.
Tonight’s 4-2 loss in Montreal? Not the case at all as the final score flattered the Flames with two late goals in the third to make it look like a better hockey game than it was.
Out special teamed in the firsd, a collapse in the second, and some serious score effects in the third marched this snoozer into the loss column from the early going.
A lot of the positives that I took out of both Toronto losses early this week were completely absent in this one.
Is Montreal that good? Or was Calgary, in this one, just really really bad?
Line Up Changes
One very big change to the lineup tonight … David Rittich for Jacob Markstrom.
Truthfully Markstrom was coming off his worst start in a Flame’s uniform. It’s not like he cost the team the game, but in comparison to his other appearances he was average, and the team didn’t get the two points. For Rittich his first start in the relatively new season, and first appearance in Calgary colours since that terrible experience in the elimination game against Dallas.
Up front it all comes down to Dillon Dube who once again is a game time decision, perhaps a more possible game time decision than last time out. If Dube goes the lineup looks like this …
Elias Lindholm between Matthew Tkachuk and Dillon Dube, Sean Monahan with Johnny Gaudreau and Dominik Simon, Mikael Backlund with Sam Bennett and Andrew Mangiapane, and Derek Ryan with Milan Lucic and Josh Leivo.
If he doesn’t Mangiapane goes to the first line, Leivo to the third line and Joakim Nordstrom into the lineup on Ryan’s line.
No drama on the blueline at all, as the Flames walk out the same three pairs that we’ve seen all season. Mark Giordano with Rasmus Andersson; the first pair that has been playing like a third pair for much of the season, though their metrics are improving. Noah Hanifin with Chris Tanev, and finally Juuso Valimaki with Nikita Nesterov.
Top Pairing Period?
Some interesting stats coming into this game.
The best defense pair in the league in terms of expected goal splits five on five (limited to pairs that have played together 50 or more minutes)?
None other than Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev at an eye popping 72.7% xGF% through five games. The only other pairing in the circuit over 70% is Cale Makar and Devon Toews at 71.4%.
Ok fine, but they’re getting second pairing competition levels compared to Giordano and Andersson right? Not the case at all as Giordano and Andersson have an average % against elite of 30.2% compared to Hanifin and Tanev at 30.0%. The third pairing isn’t far behind either at 28.6%.
Tonight the second pairing was the top pairing again, maybe not to the gaudy heights of their metrics coming in, but still a 55%+ result for a duo that continues to gain consistency and familiarity.
The Rittich Start
The tale of the tape for David Rittich spells out a pretty rough night, but that wasn’t the entire story for his first start of the season.
An .810 save percentage stopping only 17 of 21 shots look rough, but I’d honestly only blame him for … of all things, giving up a breakaway goal to Tyler Toffoli, given the bouncing puck and limited options for the Montreal forward on the play.
Goal one was a bang bang play on a powerplay.
Goal two was deflected in by a teammate.
Goal three was an out of the air bat home goal by Josh Anderson … Rittich having little chance on any.
So numbers bad, but I hope the team and the goaltender recognize the reality.
Eying the Bottom Six
When your bottom six, and specifically the fourth line struggles to keep their head above water it can be a momentum changing event in a hockey game, often leading to bad stretches.
The fourth line has struggled to start the year, and that’s with the last change in four of the five games.
Starting tonight the Flames were set to go five straight games on the road without the last change, and the challenges that that creates.
So how did it go?
Miserably! All six of the bottom six forwards, including play driving Andrew Mangiapane finished under 40% in a game where the team as a whole finished at 54%. That’s not good.
Starting On Time
Don’t have to tell followers of this team, that inconsistency has been one of their biggest issues to start the season, specifically not getting off to great starts in two of their five games, including two of the last three.
Tonight if you didn’t see the game you’d assume the same transpired as the Canadiens headed to the room after 20 with a 2-0 lead. But that’s not really the story. The Flames were the better team five on five, though neither team generated a whole bunch. It was the penalty trouble and the corresponding Montreal powerplay that made the difference with the hosts going 2/2 in the first period, including another own goal with Juuso Valimaki deflecting what would have been a wide shot by Shea Weber into the net past David Rittich.
How About that Second?
Solid first … bad outcome.
Terrible second and game over.
The Flames couldn’t complete a pass, couldn’t establish any pressure in the Montreal zone, and gave up two more goals effectively ending the game with a miserable second period.
If you came into this game looking for a 60 minute effort, that died on the slab in the middle twenty.
Terrible period.
Tough Night For Juuso
Sometimes bad outcomes just pile up for a player, and we saw that for Juuso Valimaki and to a lesser degree Nikita Nesterov tonight.
Valimaki takes a penalty in the first leading to the Brendan Gallagher powerplay goal. Then on the Elias Lindholm minor later in the period, Valimaki tips in a Shea Weber shot that was going wide.
Another episode occurred when he lost his balance in the corner in the second leading to a chance, and a bail out from David Rittich.
Later in the second Valimaki lays out on a two on one only to have Josh Anderson complete the play with a tip into the cage out of mid air with Valimaki on his belly.
All his fault? Absolutely not … a lot of it was bad bounces to be honest. But no hiding, that was a rough night.
Retro Whites in Montreal
The colours are flipped from the 80s; the Flames wore red on the road in Montreal for the 1989 (and 1986) Stanley Cup Championship series, but the look was unmistakably classic for viewers in tonight’s game.
Montreal has always had it figured out when it comes to jerseys … tinker with one off jerseys, but leave their classic look the hell alone.
Calgary of course, went through a dark 17 years of jersey oddity before getting it right this off season.
But for an old guy like me a very nostalgic night to see those kits on the ice together again.
Counting Stats
Team Stats:
Shots – Flames 25 Habs 21
Face Offs – Flames 50%
Special Teams – Flames 1/4 Habs 2/3
Player Stats:
Points – Really thought this category would read zeros given how the third period was rolling out. But instead six different players finished with a point each including; Derek Ryan, Sam Bennett, Milan Lucic, Johnny Gaudreau, Elias Lindholm and Rasmus Andersson.
Plus/Minus – The only players to finish at a plus tonight were Derek Ryan, Sam Bennett and Mark Giordano.
Shots – Four different players had three shots on goal tonight; Elias Lindholm, Johnny Gaudreau, Rasmus Andersson and Mark Giordano.
Fancy Stats
Kind of a strange game five on five with the Flames posting a solid first period, and score effects having almost nothing to do with things with a non event third period. The Flames had the edge on the night overall with 54% on period splits of 62%/48% and 43%. High danger chances five on five fell to Montreal with a 5-3 edge (62%). Expected goals five on five were miniscule and tight, 52% Montreal with an overall build of 0.8 to 0.7. Nothing happened five on five.
In all situations the Flames had 57% of the shot attempts, 46% of the high danger chances (6-7), and 72% of the expected goal splits surprisingly.
Individually, the Flames were led by Matthew Tkachuk at 82%, his linemates Elias Lindholm and Josh Leivo right behind in the 70s. Rasmus Andersson, Noah Hanifin, Chris Tanev and Mark Giordano also had solid nights. The bottom six forwards all had a miserable night for the Flames.
