Calgary Flames 3 - Carolina Hurricanes 6

Complete Stats

Scoring

First Period

CGY [1] - Coleman (6) 5:12

CAR [1] - Fast (8) (Pesce, Skjei) 17:15

Second Period

CAR [2] - Stepan (4) (Lorentz, Cole) 7:40

CAR [3] - Svechnikov (11) (Trocheck, Skjei) 9:22

CAR [4] - Deangelo (6) (Aho, Teravainen) 12:35

CGY [2] - Tkachuk (15) (Lindholm, Coleman) 13:26

Third Period

CGY [3] - Gaudreau (15) (Gudbranson, Tkachuk) 8:57

CAR [5] - Skjei (4) (Kotkaniemi, Lorentz) 18:08

CAR [6] - Svechnikov (12) (Staal) PP 19:05

Heading into tonight’s game the Flames were looking for a bounceback after disappointing losses to the Lightning and Panthers on this road trip. Calgary made a curious decision going with Dan Vladar for the second night in a row leading to questions regarding the health of Jacob Markstrom. We haven’t heard anything yet regarding his status.

Calgary got off to a very strong start in this game, controlling play in the first period and jumping ahead 1-0 thanks to a turnover and snipe by Blake Coleman. Carolina finally got going late in the first and tied things up with Jesper Fast deflecting a point shot.

The Canes pulled away in the second period with three quick goals and Calgary was never able to recover in this one as they lost for the third straight time. Goals from Matthew Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau pulled the game back within reach but two late goals sealed the win for Carolina.

Final Thoughts

• Line Juggling: The Flames tried something new with Tkachuk-Lindholm-Coleman as the top line with Mangiapane-Monahan-Gaudreau as the second line. While there was an early spark for the team, Monahan dragged down his linemates and was relegated back to the fourth line by the third. His tremendous downfall continues
• Goalies: It was quite surprising to see Vladar in net and we will now await news regarding Markstrom’s status. You would have to think something would be up with his health because it is otherwise tough to justify throwing in very young goaltender for back-to-back games against arguably the league’s best two teams
• Learning Experience: These last three games have really shown the gap between the Flames and the elite contenders in the league. Hopefully Brad Treliving realizes that while this team is playoff calibre, they will need help to take the next step.
• Hot Start with No Finish: Calgary got off to a very good start similar to the Florida game, but were unable to even finish the first period ahead. Carolina looked rusty early and Calgary was outshooting them 16-4 at one point with a number of good chances, but could only scrape ahead 1-0. With some better finish Calgary would have been in a much stronger position as Carolina got back to their dominant style.
• Next Game? Calgary’s next game is currently scheduled for January 13 against Ottawa in a rare home game given the COVID restrictions, but the NHL could be coming out with a revised schedule at some point in the next week or so. We will see if the schedule gets changed up as a result.

Flame Of The Game

Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images

Brett Ritchie (F): He isn’t a player that we have always loved in the lineup but tonight was at the very least a solid performance for the bottom six forward. He had four shots and drew a penalty while being a part of the Flames best line tonight alongside Dillon Dube and Mikael Backlund. At least a step in the right direction as he is freshly back in the lineup.

What’s Next?

1/13: Calgary Flames vs Ottawa Senators, 7 PM MT