They gave the hottest
power play in the NHL
and one of the best home
teams in the league a
chance for the easy way
out.
Thanks to 'The New
Guys,' however, the
Flames managed to avoid
slitting their own
wrists after a steady
stream to the penalty
box, recent acquisitions
Marcus Nilsson, Ville
Nieminen and Chris Simon
all scoring single
markers in helping
Calgary pull a dramatic
and critical point out
of Nashville last night,
tying the Predators 4-4
in an end-to-end speed
fest featuring two of
the quicker teams in the
NHL.
The resurgence of
Nieminen from the
purgatory of Chicago,
coached by the brother
of Flames mentor Darryl
Sutter, has been nothing
short of startling.
"I don't know if
I played in Chicago, I
just lived there,"
said Nieminen after the
game on FAN960 .
"They can stop
talking about 'Finding
Nemo.' I've found
myself."
Indeed, Niemen's
story has some
similarities to that of
the formerly missing
Nilsson, doing pretty
much nothing in Florida
but doing a whole lot as
a Flame with his third
goal in his last two
games.
Simon scored his 15th
of the season and first
in a Calgary uniform
while Jarome Iginla
generated his 36th of
the year.
The transformation of
the dour Predators and
Flames into two of the
more exciting teams in
the NHL has been as
sudden as it has been
profitable in the
standings for each,
Nashville and Calgary
both advancing leaps and
bounds this season and
providing a loud and
appreciative sellout
crowd of 17,113 at the
Gaylord Entertainment
Center ample reason to
continue to buy tickets
in a hockey outpost.
A steady stream of
Calgary penalties,
however, might well have
been a sure guarantee of
execution given
Nashville entered this
game operating at a
sharp 31.5% clip with
the man advantage since
acquiring offensive whiz
Steve Sullivan 13 games
ago, scoring 20 power
play goals since he
arrived.
Nor did the Predators
disappoint, scoring
twice on seven
opportunities. But as
good as Nashville has
been on the offensive
side of the puck lately,
so too have they been
surrendering far too
much to the opposition,
Calgary coming back in
this game in dramatic
fashion from a late
second period 3-1
deficit to secure the
tie.
"But we didn't deserve
to win this hockey
game," said
Nieminen "We got
outsmarted. Not
outworked, but
outsmarted."
Calgary is now
35-26-7-3 on the season,
good for 80 points,
secure in sixth place in
the NHL's wild, wild
Western Conference,
advancing within two
points of fifth spot
Dallas, staying steady
with a two point lead on
seventh place Nashville
and two points up on
eighth place St. Louis.
Most importantly,
Calgary established a
three point edge on
ninth place Los Angeles,
losers earlier in the
day.
Calgary opened
scoring only 26 seconds
into the game, newly
acquired Nilsson
depositing a Shean
Donovan rebound behind
Nashville starter Tomas
Vokoun.
The Predators
answered shortly
thereafter, the NHL's
hottest power play
getting a marker from
ex-Flame Andreas
Johansson on a snapshot
from the slot after a
clever pass from Martin
Erat at 2:39.
Scott Hartnell then
lingered in the Flames
zone and took advantage
of a Flames turnover at
their own blueline,
Hartnell deflecting a
point shot past
Kiprusoff at 10:20 of
the second.
Scott Walker and
Steve Sullivan did all
the work in front of
Kiprusoff on yet another
powerplay, Jeremy
Stevensen then pounding
a loose puck home at
17:38, a goal that might
well have punched the
Flames clock for the
night as the Predators
took a 3-1 lead late in
the second period.
But Shean Donovan
then drove hard into the
Nashville zone, throwing
a pass to the front of
the net where Nieminen
on his knees deflected
it past Vokoun at 18:28.
From there Craig
Conroy took a long pass
from Kiprusoff then
dished it off to a
streaking Simon who
scored on a backhand to
tie the game only 34
seconds after Nieminen's
marker.
Nashville burst into
the lead once again only
13 seconds into the
third period on an Adam
Hall goal but Conroy
broke through the middle
of the Predator zone,
passed to Jarome Iginla,
the latter scoring only
18 seconds later after a
great dipsy doodle move
for his 36th of the
year, one behind league
leader Rick Nash of
Columbus.
Both goals came four
on four.
From there it was a
game of line rushes,
particularly in overtime
where Dan Hamhuis saw
his shot wobble just
over the Calgary net
before Nieminen had his
backhand on a breakaway
bounce off the crossbar.
"I put all the
moves I had but I just
couldn't put it
in," said a
despondent Nieminen, who
scored his third as a
Flame. "It was
heart breaking."
We believe him.
It was only the third
time in 30 starts in a
Calgary uniform that the
normally impeccable
Kiprusoff had allowed
four or more goals. He
faced 32 shots while
Calgary directed 24 at
Vokoun.
Flames were zero for
three on the powerplay.
Calgary had lost six
of the last seven times
they had visited
Nashville.
Flames quickly march
off to St. Louis for a
game tomorrow night
(Sunday) . . . . yet
another critical
situation in a marathon
season with the finish
line now firmly in sight
and teams still
sprinting.
