The Flames always seem to heat up at this time of year and one man is not too excited by their recent performance just yet.
Right about this time of the season -- and seemingly right about this time every season -- it is fashionable to climb aboard the Calgary Flames bandwagon.
It's understandable.
Going into the Jan. 13 slate of games the Flames are first in the Northwest Division. More importantly, they are third in the Western Conference and hanging tough with the two teams -- San Jose and Detroit -- the media still call the runaway leaders of the West.
In the overall rankings, the Flames are a very competent seventh overall with more than twice as many wins as regulation losses (25-12) along with just four overtime defeats. They are a dominating 15-4-3 at home and a competent 10-8-1 on the road. Looking at their most recent measuring stick -- 8-1-1 in their last 10 games -- they are playing as well or better than any of the more celebrated division leaders.
As a frequent critic of the Flames I could finally argue -- more intelligently than passionately -- that it's time for me too to climb on board.
Sorry, I'm not there yet.
Don't get me wrong, I like what I see of the turnaround from the dreadful start.
I see a solid second line emerging behind the Jarome Iginla-led first unit and it's a good one. I also see Daymond Langkow, who has a good mind for the game, bringing young players along since dropping off Iginla's unit. That's added balance and a sense of maturity, especially because Langkow had embraced the change rather than pouting about it as some players might be expected to do.
I particularly like the competitiveness of the youthful additions to the team. I doubted whether the Flames had addressed their lack of youth problems adequately in recent off-seasons, but the play of Mike Cammalleri, Curtis Glencross and Rene Bourque seems to have energized the forward ranks for the Flames and more than compensated for the sporadic contributions of last summer's questionable off-season pickup, Todd Bertuzzi.
There's also been an infusion of youthful exuberance and reasonably competent play on the backend with the emergence of Adam Pardy and Mark Giordano to supplement the core of the defensive unit.
Rounding out the on-ice package, one can't say enough about the stellar play of goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff. Not only has he overcome his traditional slow start, but he seems to have relieved himself of carrying a cauldron of hate for head coach Mike Keenan.
Keenan too appears to have finally gotten his message through, so much so that the Flames are not only playing well, but are playing for each other, a hallmark of Keenan's many successful teams. Sure it may have come because Keenan has made himself an object of the player's dislike, but that's a typical Keenan tactic. Give players something to unite against and they often come together to play better for themselves. Hey, it's an old dog's trick, but it's still an effective one.
So what's the problem?
Well, three things actually.
First, we've seen this before. A December-January burst of success is not uncommon for the Flames who seem to come together at a time when many other teams, even elite teams, have a holiday and post-holiday season sag.
Part of that might be because the Flames often have had to dig out from under a slow start. They tend to come together when there is criticism and adversity and that rush to success usually comes at a time when many other teams are in a lull.
Secondly, I have real concern about the above mentioned defence.
The goals-for--goals-against differential is 130-121. That's just a nine-goals-for advantage a dangerous number given the Detroit Red Wings have a differential of plus-39 (157-118). The Sharks are plus-45 (143-98), the Boston Bruins are a stunning plus-60 (154-94). Even the goaltending-challenged Washington Capitals are at least in double figures at plus-14, (139-125).
Some of that can be explained by the falloff in offensive production from point stud Dion Phaneuf and that has the potential to turn around and quickly, but some of that is also the fault of Phaneuf's sometimes poor play in the defensive zone (minus-eight) and he is not alone in that regard.
Good team defence is a primary need in the second part of the season and the Flames still have substantial work to do in that area, especially when the offense, though competent, is both something shy of explosive and has a few players -- Cammalleri and Bertuzzi to name two -- whose plus-minus is dragging the club down.
And finally there is Kiprusoff. He's playing well and is arguably the reason for the improved fortunes, but he's also playing a lot.
In the Calgary nets there is no second option and while that's not now a primary concern of Keenan, a coach who has long preferred having a go-to-guy seemingly every night of the regular season, there needs to be fear of late-season burnout.
Kipruoff is a talent but that's different from a workhorse and there's reason to be concerned, especially if Keenan doesn't find a way to ease back on the nightly whip.
No goalie has spent more time on the ice than Kiprusoff (2,286 minutes, 35seconds) this season and only one, Joey Mac Donald of the woeful New York Islanders, has seen more shots (1151-1101).
In minutes played that's a far cry from San Jose's Evgeni Nabokov's 1,781:18 or his 803 shots against. It's also out of sight in regards tandem goalies like Boston's Tim Thomas (1,442:16 and 747) and Manny Fernandez's (1,100:51 and 527) or Detroit's Ty Conklin (1,245:27 and 593 and Chris Osgood (1,313:34 and 589).
The Flames are a good team that has turned around a poor start, but as for getting onboard Calgary's Stanley Cup express, I think I'll wait just awhile longer.
I've seen this version of the Flames before and only time will tell if this edition really is a different team.
