Flames Take Two

The Flames went into two arenas that have been quite unfriendly in the past and walked away with 4 points. First, the Flames shut out the two time defending Western Conference Champion Red Wings in Joe Louis Arena, which is no easy task. For the first time since 1977, the Red Wings were shutout twice in a row at home; the Flames being the back half of that equation. The following night, the Flames are down 3-1 going into the third period, yet manage to battle back to beat the slumping Blue Jackets for wins on consecutive nights. The Flames now have won 9 road games on the season and have gained points in 13 of their 14 contests away from the Dome. A drastic change from past years where “the Road” was the last place the Flames wanted to be.

Miikka Kiprusoff once again stole the show in a Flames game, not to mention stole two points for the win. The Flames were out shot 40-17 over the three periods of play and Kipper managed to stop everything that was thrown at him (well, sort of). Detroit had two goals that were disallowed that looked to be legitimate scoring plays. The Wings must have thought they jumped in Doc Brown's Delorean and went back to 1999 when the infamous “foot in the crease” rule was a topic of conversation. The goal was apparently called off because Kipper did not have a chance to save the puck due to Cleary being in front of him, and being slightly in the crease. Is that not called screening the goalie? Most fans, even Flames fans, thought that it should have counted yet the Flames caught a major break. It is a very vague rule as there was no penalty called on the play and is something the league should look into changing. Nonetheless the Flames played a strong third period and kept the home team off the board and Miikka earned his second shutout of the season.

Now if you read this blog often, you will know Olli Jokinen really grinds my gears. Well Olli, you really have shown you can contribute to this team after all. Scoring 10 points in the last 8 games, he is showing more confidence and playing like he is capable of being a high calibre NHLer. He is fore-checking with authority and using some patience when he is handling the puck, which is a drastic change from earlier in the season. Scoring 2 goals and 2 assists during the weekend’s two wins, Olli is shutting up his critics and letting his playing do the talking. The Jokinen-Iginla experiment is clicking right now as they have provided a majority of the Flames offence over the last couple weeks. Sutter must have implored the motto, “at first you don’t succeed, try, try again, and again, and again,” until it works. Sutter does make an interesting point, where as Keenan might have diverted away from the duo playing together rather quickly, Sutter let the two superstars gel through time and let both players grow accustomed to one another. Things do not always click right away, and this seems to be the case here.

Curtis McElhinney, starting his 3rd game of the season, had a very average game amid the “Whiteout” in Columbus, but shockingly came out with the win. Normally, that would have been a loss for the back-up goaltender, but the Flames persevered and rallied to win the game. Allowing two very soft goals from the Blue Jackets, it looked as if McElhinney and the Flames were headed towards their second road loss in regulation this season. But, Curtis stopped all 13 shots he faced in the third and overtime and then made a key stop in the shootout to win his 2nd game of the season. He has had better games, but this was a good sign that the Flames back-up goalie does not need to stand on his head to win the game.

The Flames have not lost in regulation on the road since a 2-1 defeat to very same Jackets back in late October. The Flames have gained point in 9 consecutive road games and look to set a record when they travel to Nashville on Monday. The Predators, for their part, are one of the hottest teams in the NHL. They have won 8 of their last 9 games and have quickly vaulted into contention in the tight Western Conference. The Flames swept the season series last year against the Preds, outscoring them 18-12 over the four games.

The Flames are now atop the Northwest division by 2 points over the Avalanche and hold 2 games in hand. November has once again been the Flames month and hopefully they can close it out with another good showing on Monday in Music City.

This has been,

Newman on the Flames

Source of Photos:http://www.life.com/image/73870860

Arena #2.5, #3.4 - Southern California

My mission is to see the Flames play in all 30 NHL arenas, a mission that began in October of 2005 while at a local pub watching the Flames take on the Oilers. With the previous season’s work stoppage, and the season before’s run to the Stanley Cup Finals, Flames tickets had become a very hard item to come by. I was then struck with the idea of combining two of my favourite activities; watching hockey and travelling. You can follow my quest to visit all 30 arenas right here…

November 21, 2009 – Los Angeles, CA

As winter settles into Calgary, it’s always nice to make a little road trip to Southern California to see the Flames play a couple of games in warmer climates, so this past weekend, we made what has become our annual pilgrimage to Los Angeles. The Flames were playing in the Staples Center on Saturday afternoon and the Honda Center on Monday night.

I’ve never liked afternoon games as it just doesn’t seem right to be watching hockey while it is still daylight out, and sunlight is beaming through the tunnels and into the seating bowl. Nonetheless, we arrived at the Staples Center about an hour before puck drop, which on this sunny afternoon was at 1:00PM. We were walking from our hotel and passed through LA Live, which is being dubbed the “Times Square of the West.” Of course it is nothing like Times Square, and far too contrived to ever be like Times Square, but it is filled with bars and restaurants and adds more to the vibrancy of the city than what was previously there, a two level parking garage. LA Live also features the Nokia Theatre, which hosts various awards ceremonies and movie premiers. On this particular Saturday, it was being set up to host the American Music Awards the following night.

As this was not our first trip to the Staples Center, we were less inclined to do the usual circle of the concourse. Instead, it is a quick line to the concessions for an afternoon beer, before heading to out seats in section 207 behind the Flames’ attack end. Noticeable at this game, was the poor attendance. Of all the games I’ve been to at the Staples Center, there are usually pretty good crowds, nearing capacity. I don’t know if it was because it was an afternoon game or not, but by the time the puck dropped, the arena was only half full.

Things started off with a bang as most fans hadn’t even sat down yet, when Iginla came in and scored 13 seconds into the game. The Kings were able to take the lead in the 2nd period with two goals in 38 seconds, but the Flames settled down and scored four unanswered goals, taking the game 5 – 2. The afternoon was highlighted by Jarome Iginla scoring his 9th career hat trick in the win. It was great to see the hats being thrown onto the ice at an away game, and I’ve been asked many times if I threw mine. I’d like to set the record straight: I did not throw my hat, as we were sitting behind the net in the 200 level. I wouldn’t be able to reach the ice on my own, and as we were surrounded by Kings fans, I don’t think they would have passed my hat along to ice level. If I could have thrown my hat, I would have. Really. For serious.

We headed to ESPN Zone across the street after the game for some beer and nachos, and then spent most of the night at one of the greatest bars in the world at the Figeuroa Hotel, two blocks from the Staples Center. If you’re ever in LA, head to the Figueroa for a drink, you won’t be disappointed!

Staples Center Fast Facts

Seats: Section 207; $40; StubHub
Score: Flames 5, Kings 2
Souvenir Stick: none
Public Transit: Train stop across the street
Unique Arena Trait: Three levels of luxury suites
Swag: Anze Kopitar 8x10 photo

November 23, 2009 – Anaheim, CA

The second leg of our Southern California trip was the Flames-Ducks game at the Honda Center in Anaheim. For the past four years, a trip to SoCal meant a game against the Kings who haven’t made the playoffs in almost a decade, and a game against the Ducks, we were perennial Stanley Cup contenders. This year however, the roles have been reversed, as going into the weekend, the Kings and Flames were tied in the standings at fourth place in the Western Conference, and the Ducks found themselves in the cellar. This was my fourth game at the Honda Center, I thought this would be the best opportunity to see the Flames do something I’d never see before; win in Anaheim.

We arrived at the arena only ten minutes before the game, as there isn’t really anything to do in the Honda Center beforehand. It may be the most vanilla arena in the league, and it is exactly what I fear when there is talk of a new arena for the Flames; I fear we end up with something like the Honda Center. It lacks any unique characteristics, or any atmosphere. It kind of feels like the Saddledome during the Superskills competition, as the crowds are sparse, few people really care about the result, and after the game everybody will leave as soon as possible to get home earlier.

Our tickets for the game were purchased on Ticketmaster and were part of a “Miller Lite Beer Pack” promotion, which for $60 each, we received a ticket in the lower bowl, a hot dog and a beer. Ahhh, the benefits of watching hockey in California! Interestingly enough however, when we redeemed our hot dog and beer vouchers, we received Coors Light, despite the promotion being sponsored by Miller Lite.

Like the game in LA two days earlier, the stands were pretty empty, with an announced crowd of 15,000 and change, but a crowd I’d guess to be closer to around 12,000. With the Ducks in last place, the fans have obviously stopped coming. Our seats were in section 227, which is in the lower bowl and behind the net in the Flames attack zone. As usual at a Flames-Ducks game, we were surrounded by enough Flames fans that it didn’t feel like watching a game 2000 miles from the Dome.

The Flames came out gunning, keen to make a sweep of the SoCal teams and outshot the Ducks 43-34. Despite this advantage however, the Ducks were up 2-1 on the Flames heading into the final minute of play. With much of the sparse crowd heading for the doors, hoping to beat traffic, the Flames pulled Kiprusoff for an extra attacker. On a pass from Jokinen, Iginla was able to score with only 18 seconds left in the game to tie it up. Unfortunately, the Flames were not able to score in overtime or a shootout, while Teemu Selanne was, as he beat Kiprusoff on the Ducks’ third shot, to give them the victory. Despite not winning, it was still the best Flames performance I’ve seen in Anaheim.

After the game, we headed to a nearby pub to have a beer with 'Phil in Anaheim,' whom we had met two seasons earlier at a Flames-Ducks game. Phil's a die-hard hockey fan, and we had another great discussion of everything hockey related.


Honda Center Fast Facts

Seats: Section 227; $60; Ticketmaster
Score: Flames 2, Ducks 3 in a shootout
Souvenir Stick: none
Public Transit: none
Unique Arena Trait: none
Swag: none

Photo from: http://www.life.com/image/84302189

A Tale of Two Goalies

The Flames needed a win at home, and they did exactly that; gaining a decisive 2-1 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes. Not the prettiest game in the world to watch but a win is a win anyway you slice it.

With two of the better goaltenders going head to head, one could have guessed that this would have been a low scoring affair. Let’s compare their stats after tonight’s contest:

Ilya Bryzgalov: 12 Wins, 2.13 GAA, .918 Save %
Miikka Kiprusoff: 13 Wins, 2.49 GAA, .917 Save %

Both goalies played well enough to win the game tonight but only Kipper came out with the W. Phoenix does not exactly possess the highest scoring offence; they average the 3rd least goals in the league while Calgary ranks 6th best. The Coyotes did not create many actual scoring chances throughout the game and the Flames were able to keep the chances they did get mainly to the perimeter. The one goal Phoenix did score was a point shot on the backend of the powerplay, which found its way through a maze and into the back of the net. Calgary managed to play one of its stronger defensive games this season.

As for the Flames offence, they were propelled forward by their second line and some great fore-checking. The first goal was produced by some great work down low by Eric Nystrom, coupled with a timely broken stick from Conroy, which enabled Langkow to slip onto the ice and into the slot unabated ripping it through Bryzgalov’s five hole. Calgary’s second goal was created also by some diligent fore-checking and a dandy no-look pass from David Moss, which Nigel Dawes through into the net for his first goal in 13 games.

A strong game from the secondary scoring of the Flames which is much needed as Jarome Iginla, unfortunately, can not score every game.

Anyone watching the game would have noticed Sutter shuffling the deck with the top line Left Wing spot all night. Lundmark, Dawes and Boyd all sifted by Iggy and Jokinen’s left side and no one seems to be able to cement their spot on the top unit. Who else is there? Do we bring up Backlund and give him a shot? Is it too soon for him? I think Boyd is the best fit for that line and presents the most upside at this point, but only time will tell. As for Lundmark, he is too much of a defensive liability at this point to be a permanent fixture on the top line or in the NHL. He does possess some offensive flare but his inconsistencies on the defensive side of the puck have plagued him for years and are a main reason he has never stuck it out in the big leagues. His ice time has severely decreased in the three games he has played, dropping to 11:06 in tonight’s affair.

Going back to the goalies, both have the opportunity to represent their countries at the upcoming Olympic Winter games. While the Breeze will battle Nabokov for the starting job for Russia, Kipper has stated that he will only play for Finland if he is named the starter. The decision by Kipper is controversial in some respects, but the right choice. He is deserving of the starters role at this point, by simply being the most experienced Finnish goalie and arguably playing the best right now. Pekka Rinne and Antero Nittymaki will both challenge Kipper for the job, but Rinne is very inexperienced and Nittymaki has been quite inconsistent over the years; albeit both goalies are playing well at the moment. In the end, it is Kiprusoff’s job to lose, and Jari Kurri’s decision to make.

As for the Flames, they head out on a six game road trip that takes them through Detroit, Columbus, Nashville, Phoenix, San Jose and Los Angeles. A very critical road trip as the Flames are looking to uproot Colorado from their perch atop the Northwest division. We should expect to see McElhinney at least once along the long trip as Kipper can not be expected to rival the Energizer bunny for endurance, like he has in years past. The Flames will look to improve on their spectacular road record of 7-1-3, and put some separation between them and the rest of the western conference.

This has been,

Newman on the Flames

Source of Photo: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/dawes-propels-flames-past-coyotes/article1377911/

Flames Can't Solve Ducks

For the tenth straight time in the regular season the Flames failed to beat the Anaheim Ducks in the Honda Center. Not sure if it is the mystical aroma or the echo you get when you drop a pin in the stadium, but the Flames have constantly had trouble winning in Disneyland.

Tonight the Flames outplayed the Ducks in the 1st and 3rd periods outshooting them 33-13 during those two frames. Despite doing so, the Flames were only able to generate 2 goals and allowed the Ducks to score on their limited chances during the first period. It just happened that the Ducks scored these two goals faster than most people can use the bathroom. Does this sound familiar? For the fourth straight game the Flames allowed two ‘bang-bang’ goals to occur:

Colorado- 2 Goals in 1:06
Chicago- 2 Goals in 36 seconds (Albeit the game was out of reach at that point)
L.A- 2 Goals in 38 seconds
Tonight vs. Anaheim – 2 Goals in 1:08

Is it a lack of focus? A sudden lack of confidence? Do they forget about their assignments because they are worried about getting scored on again? For professional athletes to show such a lack of mental toughness is brutal. This has happened far too often this season to simply consider it a strange occurrence. This problem, along with the “shift after a goal” dilemma needs to be fixed immediately.

Jarome Iginla was again a force, scoring the tying goal with 18 seconds left in the game, while logging a beefy 28 minutes of ice-time. Olli Jokinen played better; that is all. The other part of that top line, Jamie Lundmark, may have paved his way back to Abbotsford tonight for “the bonehead” play of the year when he fired the puck directly into the slot from behind his own net, right onto the tape of Corey Perry, which led directly to the Ducks first goal. This play, coupled with a -2 performance on the night, really nullified any good progress he made in the Kings game.

The Flames head home to face the Hamilton (Phoenix) Coyotes on Wednesday night. The Flames have been horrifyingly average at home and need to exert their dominance inside the Dome. The Coyotes seem like a good place to start doing so.

This has been,

Newman on the Flames

Source of photo: http://www.seattlepi.com/hockey/2041ap_hkn_flames_ducks.html

Iginla Wears a Nice "Hat"

On a Saturday afternoon in mid November, Jarome Iginla showed why he is considered one of the most dangerous players in the NHL. Netting his 9th career hat trick in the Flames 5-2 victory over the Los Angeles Kings, Iginla dominated from start to finish.

A mere 13 seconds into the contest, as Kings and Flames fans alike were still getting comfortable in their seats, Iginla snapped home his 13th of the season. Playing on a line with Olli “Joke”inen and recently called-up Jamie Lundmark, Iginla continued his hot streak and helped Calgary stop their recent 2 game slide.

The second period offered some suspense as flashes of Thursday nights collapse came into view when the Kings scored 2 goals in 38 seconds to take the lead by 1. Fortunately, Sutter called a timeout and calmed his troops down, enabling them to force the Kings into making some mistakes. The Flames responded, coming back and scoring a powerplay goal on a highlight reel pass from Bouwmester to Iggy to tie the game up at 2. The turning point in the game came in the early portion of the 3rd period when the very same Iginla took an untimely tripping penalty, opening the door for L.A. to take the lead. However, the Flames “flipped the script” on the Kings with some aggressive fore-checking forcing a turnover in the Kings zone. A well timed pass from Glencross turned into Daymond Langkows 7th goal of the season, and a 3-2 Flames lead. Iginla finished off his afternoon with a rebound goal that let the hats rain down from the rafters from loyal Flames Fans following the team down to Southern California.

Rebounding from Thursday game was vital. A disappointing game today could have been disastrous. Jarome Iginla knew this, and carried his team on his very broad shoulders.

Jay Bouwmeester and Cory Sarich were two defensemen that stood out in this game. The pass from Bouw was “all-star esque” and Jay seems to be finding his way with his new team after a very quiet first 20 games. Cory Sarich’s hit on Wayne Simmonds behind the net in the first period helped to set the tone for the whole game; something Sarich has to do much more of if he wants to justify not being traded.

The Flames powerplay scored two goals on seven chances, and one goal was scored on a 2 man advantage. It did look better today but is still not producing at the level it should be.

And a new “Joke” segment that I have added until my favourite whipping boy turns it around (who knows if he ever will?):
Lombardi- 4 Goals, 8 Assists, 19 GP
Jokinen-3 Goals, 10 Assists, 21 GP

Bottom line- Jokinen continues to pave his road out of Calgary.

This has been,

Newman on the Flames

source of photo: http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-elliott-kings22-2009nov22,0,1323445.column