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Calgary Flames

A Case of the Mondays: Undefeated

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Pre-season hockey is in full swing, and while a spotless record may be nothing to write home about, the Flames put another one in the win column the other night with a 5-4 shootout victory against Tampa’s stars, in a game where the majority of the home team’s top guns were out of action. T.J. Brodie‘s two goals after surviving the first round of camp cuts had people talking over the weekend and into today, and while the possibility of him making the team out of camp is likely small, it seems that the slight defenceman is getting a long, hard look by Flames management, as Brodie has yet to receive his ticket to Abbotsford with the second round of cuts coming this afternoon. The Flames also announced the signings of Hitmen alum Giffen Nyren and centre Matt Keith to AHL contracts. Keith, formerly Blackhawks property, scored 21 goals and 41 points in 69 games with the Rockford Icehogs last season. Calgary takes to Saddledome ice again tomorrow when they square off against the Coyotes (7:30PM MT, TSN), a game in which Niklas Hagman is expected to make his return to the lineup after practicing yesterday for the first time since suffering an eye injury against the Canucks.

Speaking of our neighbours to the West, you know who’s not undefeated? The Canucks. In fact they’re far from it after an 8-2 whipping at the hands of Jordan Eberle and the Oilers last night, so take that for what it’s worth I suppose–a fleeting sense of superiority over our chief rivals that we may not get to experience again this season.

Links after the jump. 

Domebeers 'meanders' on the topics of Kotalik, Langkow, and the Flames' cap situation, amongst others

WI keeps the optimism flowing with her take on the Flames' pre-season success [Hit The Post]

A preview of the Flames' blueline and a tempering of expectations of sorts for T.J. Brodie, complete with Boston accents and allusions to Jersey Shore [The 4th Line Blog]

Defenceman Gord Baldwin has been placed on waivers, and is likely Abbotsford-bound upon clearance, while C John Armstrong (eye) practiced today , but only briefly. Rene Bourque and Raitis Ivanans sat out today’s practice for “maintenance” reasons [Flames Insider]

Today's training camp update, from Pat Steinberg at FlamesNation 

Ales Kotalik discusses his visits with the Flames' resident shrink Dave Paskevich and his hopes for a bounce-back season [Yahoo! Sports]

Lost in the incessant lampooning of Darryl Sutter’s penchant for ‘reclamation projects’ and bringing players back for a second go-around with the team is Vancouver’s decision to extend a training camp invite to veteran forward Brendan Morrison, once part of the infamous ‘West Coast Express’ line with teammates Todd Bertuzzi and Markus Naslund. After surviving another round of roster cuts today, it is likely that Morrison will be offered a contract by his former team once or before his tryout agreement expires on October 7th [The Globe and Mail]

Elliotte Friedmen’s 30 Thoughts returns to the online hockey media sphere, with Wade Redden‘s demotion to AHL’s Hartford Whalers as the main topic of discussion [CBC Sports]

Tyler Dellow defends his position on sending Taylor Hall and Magnus Paajarvi to Oklahoma for a year of seasoning in the minors [Mc79hockey]

With Mike Fisher potentially injured after leaving practice today with a groin strain, who takes his place in the Sens lineup? [The Globe and Mail] And, the Leaf’s decision on whether or not to keep prospect Nazem Kadri on the roster following training camp could be contingent on their cap situation.

And the awkward headline award goes to…The Edmonton Journal for this piece on Oilers' fans excitement over the team's young stars in the making 

Speaking of our Northern nemeses, the Oilers also trimmed their roster today, sending prospect Teemu Hartikainen and four others packing to Oklahoma City [The Copper & Blue]

According to NHL COO John Colins, the league is close to an agreement that would see the majority of US-based teams incorporate in-market broadband and wireless streaming into their broadcasts [Triangle Business Journal]

Should NHL teams, like their CFL brethren, have Canadian player quotas? [Puck Daddy]

With few glaring deficiencies in their lineup, the Caps look to their off-season additions to improve upon their struggles on the penalty kill in 2010-11 [CSN Washington] 

Finally, check out Leland Irving‘s new mask displaying the Live Strong message–Irving survived a battle with a rare cancer as a child, and is one of three goalies remaining in Flames training camp [NHLFlames]

That's it for today, have a great week everyone!

by Hayley Mutch