The Calgary Flames stretched their season-long point streak to 11 games, falling 4-3 to the Oilers in a shootout in a back-and-forth Battle of Alberta at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Thursday. Here are some takeaways from the game.
CRAZY CONTEST IN THE PROVINCIAL CAPITAL
On goals by Matthew Tkachuk and Mark Giordano, the Flames had a 2-0 lead before the Oilers, on two goals by Brandon Davidson and one by Zack Kassian, battled back to take a 3-2 lead. Calgary drew even just before the eight-minute mark of the third period, when Tkachuk scored his second of the game.
Still tied through three periods of play, the two teams were forced to work overtime. Edmonton appeared to win the game a little more than one minute into the extra period when Ryan Strome shovelled the puck past David Rittich. The Oilers celebrated while most of the Flames players, thinking the game was over, left the bench and went to the dressing room. Thousands of fans left the arena bowl, trying to beat the crowd out of the building.
But Glen Gulutzan stayed on the bench, staring at the monitor below his feet, and the officials stayed on the ice. After a short chat with the NHL’s Situation Room and a long look at the Oilers’ goal, referee Kendrick Nicholson, in far fewer words, broke this news to fans at Rogers Place.
Once word spread to the Flames dressing room that the game might not be over, players returned to the bench in time to hear the referees announce the goal had been overturned.
In another bizarre twist, it looked like the Oilers were going to get a power play when play resumed after Flames goaltender David Rittich smashed his stick on the goal post after giving up what he thought was the game-winning goal. Instead of giving the rookie goalie a two-minute misconduct that would have left the Flames short-handed, the officials decided to give him a 10-minute misconduct, which had absolutely no impact on the game because Garnet Hathaway, who the Flames wouldn’t have used in overtime anyway, served the penalty.
Both teams had a plethora of opportunities to end the game in OT, but couldn’t, so the Flames and Oilers were forced to settle the score in a shootout, which was an anticlimactic way to end what was a great hockey game. With the shootout tied at one on goals by Edmonton’s Mike Cammalleri and Tkachuk, Oilers captain Connor McDavid scored what turned out to be the shootout-winner to lead his team to victory.
STREAKING INTO THE ALL-STAR BREAK
There’s good news and bad news for the Flames and their fans going into a four-day break between games. I’ll start with the bad news. The Flames went into their five-day bye week with seven straight wins, but have come out of it with four consecutive losses.
The good news is the Flames lost all of those games in overtime or a shootout to stretch their season-long point streak to 11 games. Calgary’s last regulation loss was on Dec. 28, when it dropped a 2-1 decision to the Ducks in Anaheim. Since then, the Flames have put 18 of a possible 22 points in the bank, going 7-0-4 in 11 games since New Year’s Eve. With seven teams separated by just three points in the Western Conference playoff race, every single point is important. The Flames will go into the all-star break in a playoff spot.
HE HATE ME
If the NHL was the XFL (thankfully, it’s far from it), Tkachuk could wear “HE HATE ME” on the back of his jersey. Following his team’s 2-1 overtime victory over the Flames on Wednesday, Kings all-world defenceman Drew Doughty told Sportsnet’s Eric Francis that he’s “pretty sure” the Flames forward is the league’s most-hated player.
I’m pretty sure Tkachuk wouldn’t have it any other way. In his first two NHL seasons, Keith’s son has drawn more penalties than any player in the league and his hockey IQ is off the charts. Tkachuk isn’t just an agitator, he is a skilled player. In his first 122 career games, Tkachuk has 53 assists, eight more than any other player from the fantastic 2016 NHL Draft. His 27 goals and 80 points are third most. Only the Maple Leafs’ Austin Matthews and the Jets’ Patrick Laine, who went first and second overall, respectively, have more.
The harder teams try to get the former sixth-overall pick off his game, the better he seems to play. A number of Oilers, including Kassian and Patrick Maroon, tried to get to Tkachuk on Thursday. His response? Two goals in the game and another in the shootout, despite briefly leaving the game with an upper-body injury in the second period.
While Doughty, who was elbowed by Tkachuk in a game late last season, probably dislikes the Flames forward, who was suspended for two games for the infraction, he might be right. Much like the Ducks’ Ryan Kesler and the Bruins’ Brad Marchand, 30 NHL teams (and their fans) really dislike Tkachuk. But here’s the thing – every single one of those teams wishes they had him. If they did, they would love him just as much as the Flames and their fans do.
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FLAMES VS. GOLDEN KNIGHTS
The Flames and Vegas Golden Knights are in the same division, so it’s strange that more than halfway through the regular season, the two teams haven’t met. The Flames will finally play their new Pacific Division foe in their first game following the NHL’s All-Star break next Tuesday – and I can’t wait to see the expansion Golden Knights with my own two eyes for the first time. After the tragic shootings in Las Vegas on Oct. 1, the city seemed to rally around its first major professional sports team, while the Golden Knights’ unexpected success has been a great distraction for a grieving city.
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