Game 34 Recap: Woo Woo

Ten Thoughts

–Miikka Kiprusoff had an outstanding game-I do believe this is where I drop the “Vintage Kipper” label-probably one of, if not the, best performance(s) of the season for him. 30 shots and 29 stops on the night.

–Mikael Backlund had an excellent game tonight. His possesion stats might not look outlandish, with a +1 in EV scoring chances and a +3 in Corsi, but I was really impressed with the 17:29 he was on the ice. Oh, and that final face-off win was pretty awesome too.

-The fans that are at the 'Dome don't really add to the game anymore. I think the glory days of the C of Red have gone by the wayside. You could legitimately make an argument two ways here as to why, but either way the end result is a stoic mass of people.

-Everything that happened on Curtis Glencross‘ goal was outstanding. The cycling, the set-up pass, the aversion of the defence…and of course, the top ched on the backhand.

–Paul Byron’s first game back was a big “meh”. I guess we’ll see how he progresses in the next few games as Matt Stajan’s on IR. Jay Bouwmeester, Chris Butler and few other guys had pretty good games tonight.

–Tim Jackman was left a bloody mess after a fight tonight. After reading the Derek Boogaard pieces in the New York Times, I’m just about done with fighting, period.

-The first line of the Flames had the best game of their season tonight. They, along with Jay Bouwmeester and Chris Butler, started exactly zero times in the offensive zone yet they still put up 13 more scoring chances at EV then their opponents. They also were a combined +22 in Corsi before the score effects started to take hold in the third period (they finished at +10 in Corsi).

-Another great special teams performance tonight. A lot of virtual ink has been spilled about the resurgent PP, but the aggressive PK has really helped keep the team in it. Olli Jokinen’s two penalties late were irrelevant thanks to the PK unit.

-An anonymous tipster sent me an email stating that apparently there are some media members who are angry at me because "I'm asking questions". This confuses me-I'm fully credentialed by the Flames and I'm looking to add to any commentary I produce. There's a reason I wait until the end to ask questions-I don't want to step on any toes. Do they expect me to just sit there? The thing I find funny is that when I'm sitting in the Media Lounge, people are always speaking their mind and bitching about things-much like we do on the internet-but they never ask questions about it. It's really gutless, to be honest. Talking about me behind my back and not having the balls to tough ask questions really shows how sad the state of some (and I emphasize this because there are at least a few guys who have been awesome with me) of the media in this city is.

-The Flames were full value for the win tonight-after the first. Their domination in the second period basically won them the game. Those first 10 minutes the Flames out-shot the Wild 10-0 and racked up a +9 Corsi rating. The score effects I talked about above took hold a wee bit in the third, leading to the team finishing +4 in EV scoring chances and +4 in Corsi. A good game overall but those types of swings won’t get you wins against elite teams.

Three Stars

1. Jarome Iginla-A goal and an assist led the team.
2. Miikka Kiprusoff-29 saves tonight.
3. Mikael Backlund-17+ minutes in all three situations and a couple key faceoffs.

Lastly…

The Good Guys snap a losing streak with a great performance from the top line. The Flames’ next game is Thursday against the Red Wings.

by Richard Hammond