Game 79 Recap: IGGY

by ArikJames on Apr 1, 2011 9:18 PM PDT in The Department of Game Posts

For a variety of reasons, tonight's recap is written by Justin Azevedo, the host of Matchsticks and Microphones. You can follow him on Tumblr here and Twitter here.

What a game.

It started out slow, with some back and forth action for the first 10 minutes or so. The Flames weren’t able to generate anything and after killing off an interference penalty from Mikael Backlund, they took an undisciplined Too Many Men bench minor. That particular penalty kill, Flames fans had a mild panic attack when Robyn Regehr blocked a shot and was slow to get up. He went down the tunnel for a couple minutes but did eventually return.

Just before the end of the penalty, after a spectacular blocker save by Miikka Kiprusoff, the puck hung out in the slot and Rene Bourque was too slow to clear it- leaving a wide open net for Matt D’Agostini to score his 21st of the year. After that though, there wasn’t a lot of action (as evidenced by the scoring chances & Corsi) until the 17 minute mark of the second period when Jarome Iginla tipped a Anton Babchuk slapper past Halak. Unfortunately, he couldn’t get it past the post. The Flames parlayed this pressure into a bench minor penalty for the blues, and while
both Curtis Glencross and Iginla had some great chances, Halak kept the biscuit out of the jar.

From then on, the two teams increased the tempo of the game tenfold. Rushes both ways, but again the end result had the puckstoppers doing their jobs admirably. Halak was particularly stellar, making a nice acrobatic play to block a tipped Babchuk shot wide. After a turnover by Cory Sarich in front of the net, Alexander Steen cross-checked him from behind, leading to another power play for the Flames. That was cut short by a Tom Kostopolous interference call and just as TKO was stepping out of the box, Shattenkirk threaded a pass to David Backes, who took advantage of the open backdoor for his 29th of the season. Interesting non-call, as Backes checked Sarich (who was nowhere near the puck) about 5 seconds before.

I counted 4 scoring chances for Iggy-one tip, a shot and two minor breaks-before he actually put away his 38th of the year, a nice top ched backhand over the blocker of Halak. As usual, a great pass from Alex Tanguay to set it up. The Flames kept up the pressure through the rest of the period and into the third, where at 8:01 Jarome and Tanguay converted a nice two on one give and go, resulting in Tanguay’s 20th, Iginla’s 999th point and Daymond Lankgow’s first point since his neck injury.

With 8 minutes left, Kipper basically saved the game for the Flames by catching and holding a puck on his skate-while also having his butt planted firmly on the ice.

Seeing this, Iggy decided enough was enough and via yet another feed from the bald Frenchman, he snapped his 1000th career point high glove side on Halak. The Flames shut it down the rest of the game and did an admirable job of collapsing in a good way to defend the last 30 seconds of the game. Add in a couple of good saves from Kipper, and you have a win for the good guys.

Notes

Lankgow moved up, and he was on the top line with 40 & 12 by the middle of the 2nd…he was also the target of a REALLY dangerous hit from behind by Barret Jackman…thankfully, he got right up…Mark Giordano was saddled with Brett Carson the entire game and still did pretty well, with 25 minutes and an apple…Bouwmeester didn’t suck tonight, so good for him…Staios led very well from the press box.

As with so many Flames games this season, they didn’t really start to push the play until they had been scored on. For the first 15-20 minutes, it almost seemed as though they accepted their fate-but again, like so many games this season, they found a way and battled back to get the two points. They’re still alive…for now.

Iggy’s 1000th Point

Three Stars

1. Jarome Iginla-Don’t think I need to say anything except "wow".

2. Daymond Lankgow-First game back and the dude plays 15 minutes, with a

+2.

3. Jaroslav Halak-Plenty of big saves. This game could’ve gotten a lot uglier.

Tweet Comment 12 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

Legend

You can go through life adrift and alone
desperate, desolate, on your own
but we're lookin' for a few more stalwart clones
so come and join us

eRepublik: The New World

by Temujin on Apr 1, 2011 11:01 PM PDT reply actions

you can say that again

We know two things: Shitty Hockey and Booze.
Go Flames Go!

by Justin Azevedo on Apr 1, 2011 11:14 PM PDT up reply actions

Great post Justin! I’m still so giddy about Iggy and Lanks I can’t wind down to a sleep-ready state.

Matchsticks and Gasoline

by Hayley on Apr 1, 2011 11:39 PM PDT up reply actions

Thanks, Hayley! I was so excited I was literally shaking for about half an hour after the game ended, haha.

We know two things: Shitty Hockey and Booze.
Go Flames Go!

by Justin Azevedo on Apr 1, 2011 11:40 PM PDT up reply actions

My upstairs neighbor knocked on the floor when I started shouting after his goal :D

by Colin S on Apr 2, 2011 12:23 AM PDT up reply actions

Also, great recap :D

by Colin S on Apr 2, 2011 12:24 AM PDT up reply actions

Excellent write-up Justin, awesome. Sums up a historic game and historic moment just the way it should be.

by Mitch Smith on Apr 2, 2011 6:20 AM PDT reply actions

Definite congrats to Iggy, but I just have to say, I am awed and impressed that Langkow actually returned this year. What a comeback from a career threatening injury. How bad has he been missed this year?

by Icedragon on Apr 2, 2011 10:44 AM PDT reply actions

Looked like he hadn’t missed a beat. If he’s playing the entire year I think this is a playoff team.

We know two things: Shitty Hockey and Booze.
Go Flames Go!

by Justin Azevedo on Apr 2, 2011 11:51 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions

I would go so far as to say I’d be willing to bet they would be a playoff team had they had him all year.

by Icedragon on Apr 2, 2011 12:37 PM PDT up reply actions

I’m willing to go so far as to say they would not have signed Jokinen if he hadn’t got injured.

by Mitch Smith on Apr 3, 2011 8:21 AM PDT up reply actions

Quick aside: as much as I dislike Jokinen, his presence on the team this year has probably been a net positive.

I’m pretty sure Morrison would’ve been the guy that went unsigned, leaving the depth chart as Lankgow, Jokinen, Stajan and Backlund. Remember, Darryl only offered him a contract after Stajan went down with that shoulder injury in the pre-season.

We know two things: Shitty Hockey and Booze.
Go Flames Go!

by Justin Azevedo on Apr 3, 2011 8:53 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions

Comments For This Post Are Closed

Flames Schedule

Last 5 Games

Anaheim Anaheim Calling	Sat 04/07	W 5 - 2
Vancouver Nucks Misconduct	Thu 04/05	W 3 - 2
@ Vancouver Nucks Misconduct	Sat 03/31	OT - L 2 - 3
Colorado Mile High Hockey	Fri 03/30	L 1 - 4
Los Angeles Jewels From The Crown	Wed 03/28	L 0 - 3

Network Bar

Matchsticks and Gasoline -

We made fun of Luongo before it was cool