Flames And Oilers Combine For 15 Goals, Calgary Wins Game 1, 9-6

2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs

Calgary Flames 9 – Edmonton Oilers 6

Calgary Leads Series 1-0

Complete Stats

Well, just like you thought it would go right? The Flames and Oilers combined for 15 goals in Game 1, in a game that was entertaining from start to finish.

Calgary came out HOT, scoring three goals in the first six minutes and then it became a goal scoring bonanza on all fronts. Mike Smith was pulled after giving up those three goals in the first and replaced by Mikko Koskinen who ended up giving up five of his own. Not to be outdone, Jacob Markstrom surrendered six goals on 28 shots. Not a goaltending masterpiece for sure.

Calgary was able to withstand and eventually slow down a furious Edmonton comeback, with the Oilers actually tying this game at 6-6 early in the third period before the Flames countered with three straight to put this game away and take the first game of the Battle Of Alberta, Playoff Edition, by the score of 9-6.

Scoring

1st: CGY 00:26: Lindholm (Andersson/Gaudreau), CGY 00:51- Mangiapane (Backlund), CGY 6:05- Ritchie (Unassisted), EDM 7:41- McDavid (Barrie)

2nd: CGY 00:45- Coleman (Andersson/Mangiapane), CGY 6:10- Coleman (Hanifin/Lewis), EDM 7:10- Bouchard (McDavid/Draisaitl), CGY PPG 8:24- Tkachuk (Gaudreau/Toffoli), EDM 9:38- Hyman (Unassisted), EDM 14:06- Hyman (Yamamoto/Nugent-Hopkins), CGY 19:31- Draisaitl (McDavid)

3rd: EDM 1:28- Yamamoto (McDavid), CGY 2:57- Andersson (Jarnkrok/Mangiapane), CGY 8:55- Tkachuk (Unassisted), CGY 17:49 Empty Net- Tkachuk (Gaudreau/Lindholm)

Highlights

Elias Lindholm opens the scoring

Brett Ritchie puts the Flames up 3-0

Matthew Tkachuk gets the hat trick, puts the Flames up 9-6

Final Thoughts

-Calgary needs to get a MUCH better performance from Jacob Markstrom in Game 2. He seemed off his angles on the night and surrendered a few goals because he just seemed out of position. Yes, this is the Oilers who can score, but his game wasn’t where it needed to be tonight.

-Calgary’s top line came to play tonight and they were anchored by Matthew Tkachuk. Tkachuk had a hat trick and looked like a completely different player than in the Dallas series. He was scoring, engaged, doing Tkachuk things in scrums. The rest of that line finished strong as well with Johnny Gaudreau collecting three assists and Elias Lindholm chipped in with a goal and an assist. If the Flames top line can play that way all series, things are going to be difficult for Edmonton.

-Playoff Blake Coleman has arrived! The Flames big offseason add, just for these situations, came alive tonight with two goals and finished with 4 SOG and 4 takeaways.

-The Flames brought the physical play from the get go. Milan Lucic got the trend going with a huge hit on Kris Russell and then Connor McDavid. The Oilers tried to be tough, but it didn’t work. The end of this contest ended with Milan Lucic tossing Zach Kassian to the ice like a rag doll and Duncan Keith trying to be tough until Nikita Zadorov went over and had a word with him, causing Keith to back away. This is a different Flames team that the Oilers muscle can’t push around and the Flames showed that tonight.

Flame Of The Game

Matthew Tkachuk (F): 3 goals, 8 SOG

What’s Next?

5/20: Edmonton Oilers @ Calgary Flames, 8:30 PM MT

by Mark Parkinson