Following an embarrassing 5-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Jan. 24, the Calgary Flames sat 24-24-3, were on the outside of the playoff picture looking in, and didn’t look like a team ready to make a post-season push.
They deserved the tongue-lashing they received from head coach Glen Gulutzan.
“We were pathetic,” Gulutzan said. “It was a pathetic display. No bite back, no kick back. Our top guys didn’t do anything. We needed someone to step up. You just have to man up. We play well, one bad thing happens and we crumple. Our starts have been good, but one little shot goes in and we crumple. We have no resolve to stay with it.”
Since then the Flames have been a completely different team, going 12-2-1 and riding a seven-game winning streak heading into a Thursday rematch with the Habs.
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Brian Burke, the team’s president of hockey operations, credits Gulutzan calling out his players publicly as a key turning point.
“Here’s a guy who’s a player’s coach who’s been very respectful of the players, who hasn’t thrown anyone under the bus and just snapped and threw everyone under the bus with our knowledge and consent and blessing,” Burke told Sportsnet 960 The Fan Tuesday. “This was not just Glen Gulutzan going off the handle. This was how we all felt.”
The Flames, now 36-26-4, currently occupy the top wild-card spot in the West and are just two points back of provincial rival Edmonton for second in the Pacific. Any remnants of the “pathetic” team that had “no bite back, no kick back” are gone.
Five of Calgary’s 12 wins since that Montreal loss have come in overtime, but everything about the Flames is better than it was in late January. Perhaps the most noticeable change has been in the crease.
“If you’re picking one player that deserves the credit for the turnaround it’s Brian Elliott’s play,” Burke said.
Elliott, a pending unrestricted free agent, drastically turned things around when the calendar flipped over from 2016 to 2017.
Here are a few other players Burke touched on:
Curtis Lazar, who hasn’t played since being acquired from the Senators…
“We’re not touching the lineup until the winning streak ends and hopefully it’s not for a few more games so this kid’s gonna sit, but he gets it. We believe firmly that this is going to be an exceptional acquisition. We think this kid was rushed into the NHL, he had [mononucleosis] this year, we think this is a guy who can be an excellent third-line centre or wing. He can shut people down, he can bang, kill penalties, and just a positive, positive kid. If you have a guy who’s always in a good mood, that’s good on a team.”
Sam Bennett, who has struggled to put up solid numbers this season…
“I really think Sam, over the last five games, has been our most improved player. I think things are starting to click for Sam…This was a guy we had really high hopes for when we drafted him and he’s not going to disappoint. He’s got jam, he’s got skills and he’s just going to get better.”
Michael Stone, who has impressed since being traded by the Coyotes…
“This was a [Treliving] move. I don’t know this player. I didn’t get to see him play much the last while. The last few times I watched him he didn’t do a whole lot for me. This is [Treliving] having had him in Phoenix and knowing the player and saying, ‘I believe in this guy and I’m going to get him.’
“I think sometimes the best thing you can do for a defenceman is get him a compatible partner and I think that’s what’s happened here [with T.J. Brodie]. Giving him a right-shot, stay-at-home guy has really helped T.J. Brodie’s game and Stoney’s been good for us. He can shoot the puck, he’s a big man. He’s been good in his own right but his greatest contribution probably has been that he’s made T.J. that much better.”
