The contrast was
remarkable.
In the aftermath of
taking a physical
beating in their 3-2
victory Tuesday in
Philadelphia, the Flames
encountered fair weather
and the big, bad teddy
bears in Boston, the
Bruins scarcely wiggling
a leg to signal they
were alive before
rolling over dead as
Calgary blew through
Beantown in an easy 5-0
victory.
Taking advantage of a
Bruins defence corps
that might have been the
softest the Flames have
encountered this year,
Calgary's speed proved
more than Boston could
handle, or cared to
handle, the Flames
scoring three times in
the second to add to an
earlier 2-0 edge in the
opening frame.
|
| Saprykin |
Lombardi |
Iginla |
| Gelinas |
McAmmond |
Donovan |
| Green |
Yelle |
Kobasew |
| Oliwa |
Morgan |
Clark |
| Regehr |
Leopold |
| Gauthier |
Warrener |
| Montador |
Ference |
|
"It
wasn't a very pretty
game by us ... but we
capitalized on our
chances," analyzed
Flames defenceman Denis
Gauthier after the game
on FAN960.
Jarome
Iginla scored twice for
the Flames while Matthew
Lombardi, pointless in
his previous 10 games,
notched a pair of
assists, both players
taking at least a step
out of coach Darryl
Sutter's dog house, the
latter deriding the pair
as "meant for each
other" in pre-game
comments on FAN960 given
their lack of recent
production.
Dean
McAmmond, Jordan Leopold
and Josh Green added
singles for the Flames
while Martin Gelinas
picked up two assists
and Shean Donovan
extended his point
streak to four games
with an assist.
Astonishingly,
the shot clock read
21-10 after two periods,
yet the Flames were up
5-0, mostly the result
of the confused Bruins
standing around gawking
in disbelief as agile
Calgary players skated
and weaved among them
with scarcely a physical
challenge.
Iginla's
second goal was perhaps
symbolic of the entire
night, Lombardi
streaking down the wing,
getting a free ride on
the outside on Travis
Green, then Brad Moran
leaving his post to
compensate, leaving
Iginla wide open in the
slot for an easy mark.
The
Bruins eventually
finished with an 30-14
advantage on the shot
clock, hardly believable
and perhaps wisely so
given the local boys
barely looked threatened
in this one.
The
shutout was the third of
the season for Jamie
McLennan, something of a
surprise starter given
this was expected to the
tougher of the back to
back games, including
Columbus tomorrow night,
the Flames were to play.
"What
a great character game
for him," said
Gauthier. "That was
the difference for us
today. Our goaltender
was a lot better than
theirs."
McLennan
is 8-3-1-2 on the year.
The
victory leaves the
Flames with a 16-9-2-3
record, good for 37
points on the year, only
one point behind
Colorado for fifth spot
in the NHL's Western
Conference.
Flames
have a four point edge
on seventh place San
Jose with a game in hand
as they continue to
power ahead, now six
points into the playoffs
and showing little sign
of slowing down.
With
a number of critical
players on the sidelines
with injuries, the
Flames seemed set for a
pratfall these last
three games, facing
powerhouse teams in
Colorado, Philadelphia
and Boston.
Yet
Calgary emerged
miraculously with five
of a possible six points
as Sutter's
"system"
continues to generate
answers for any problems
the fickle finger of
fate might throw at it.
Are
the Flames, now seven
games over .500 a third
of the way into the
season, for real?
These
last three games,
character games all with
a sweep only prevented
by Iginla pounding the
goalpost in overtime
against Colorado,
seeming to indicate the
answer is
"yes."
The
Flames are 6-4-0-1 on
the road and now 6-1
against the Eastern
Conference.
Both
teams were zero for four
on the power play.
Next
up is the Blue Jackets
tomorrow night in
Columbus.
