Wow, what a fantastic game! A 2-0 Flames win to force a final and deciding game 7 in San Jose.

This was by far the most intensity the Flames have shown in this series - and they were able to show it for an entire 60 minutes - something that the Flames have had trouble doing throughout this entire season. Recently, there had been a lot of questions and concern about the play of the 3rd and 4th lines on the Flames squad, but tonight, these guys showed up hungry and were the main reason the Flames were victorious. More specifically, Matthew Lombardi and Wayne Primeau were tremendous on the forecheck, not allowing the Sharks to setup offensively.

This puts the Flames in a great positions heading into game 7.  The majority of the pressure is now placed on the Sharks to win this game. Let’s hope the Flames take their energy from game 6 and bring it with them to game 7.

Despite the Flames loss, game 6 turned out to be a very entertaining game with lots of hits, goals, and end-to-end play. However, the Flames fell just shy of completing the comeback again, and fall 3-2 in the series. Needless to say, Sunday’s game in Calgary is their most important game of the year.

Things I noticed from the game 6 are:

Positives:

With the exception of a few costly giveaways, I felt that the Flames play was their best of the series. They managed 36 shots on goal (compared to 10 in the previous game), and had several excellent scoring opportunities.

Kipper had a strong game, even though he allowed 4 goals in 26 shots. To be fair, the goals that were scored were very difficult goals.

Iginla looked great. This guy plays with so much intensity and is a true leader - you can tell this guy wants to win more than anyone else on the ice. His supporting cast needs to pick up their play.

Negatives:

Matthew Lombardi - this guy has amazing speed and can blow by most defenders, however, I don’t think he knows what to do with the puck when he gets close to the goal.

The secondary scoring has dried up. The majority of the goals are coming from their top 4-5 players, while most of the other players aren’t doing much at all. Huselius is ABSOLUTELY invisible and might as well be riding the pine and let a young guy come up from the minors.

The Big Guns for the San Jose Sharks have finally showed up and last night, Marleau, Cheechoo, Campbell, and Thorton lead the way in the Sharks win. Hopefully in Sunday’s game the Flames will get back to their old ways of shutting these guys down.

Great game - I watched it at a buddies place with about 15 other people. For some, the second intermission was spent in the barbers chair showing their Flames Pride (for those who don’t know, several of the Calgary Flames players have styled their hair in this fashion). Here’s the end result:

First of all props to Joshua for his initial post. I mimicked his post. Why not check out his predictions.

Western Conference

Detroit is a powerhouse in the NHL, and with the exception of a few weeks this season (while several of their key players were injured), they have dominated most teams. Although the Predators have played reasonably well against the Red Wings this year, I don’t think they can match their veteran filled lineup. A healthy Lidstrom, Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Rafalski, and Holmstrom will be too much for Nashville.

Trevor’s Pick: DETROIT IN SIX

San Jose has been the NHL’s hottest team over the past month or two and the Flames, unfortunately, drew the short stick and will face-off against them in the first round. The pick up of Brian Campbell has been key in my opinion. He creates a serious offensive threat on the blue line and is the quarterback of their power play. The Flames meanwhile, skidded into the playoffs with a 5-5 record in their last 10 games. The only good news is they pulled off a (meaningless) 7-1 victory over the Canucks in their last game and will enter the series on a winning note. The Flames will need to play an extremely physical game with an aggressive fore-check if they want to be able to steal this series. Kipper will need to be stellar, and the Flames will need consistent scoring from their top 2-3 lines.

Trevor’s Pick: CALGARY IN SEVEN (I’m a homer, not a realist)

With only 3 points separating these teams in the standings, they are quite evenly matched, but I think that Colorado has the upper hand in this one. They started the season with very average play and have steadily improved down the stretch. The recent addition of Forsberg creates an ever greater offensive threat to an already talented lineup. Theodore has been spectacular for the Avalanche this year and I suspect his game-play will only improve once he’s in playoff mode.

Trevor’s pick: COLORADO IN SIX

I do not envy the Dallas Stars. Anaheim has such a deep lineup, they put most teams to shame. Dallas does not have enough offensive fire-power to break through the best defense in the league. The only way that Dallas would stand a chance is if Turco can stand on his head and perform a miracle. Even with recently acquired Brad Richards in the Dallas line, the Stars just can’t compare with the Ducks. This will be a quick series.

Trevor’s Pick: ANAHEIM SWEEPS

Eastern Conference

I had the amazing opportunity earlier this season to attend a Montreal VS. Boston game in Boston where the Canadiens were victorious in a 2-1 game. The intense rivalry between these two teams is one of the greatest in the NHL and I must say, I was a bit nervous wearing a Habs Jersey around Boston. Montreal has dominated Boston this year and I don’t see anything changing in the near future. Montreal is on a roll and this should be an easy (yet interesting) series for the Canadiens.

Trevor’s Pick: MONTREAL IN FIVE

I am going against the grain on this pick. I think the older, more experienced players will pull through for the Sens and they will eliminate the Penguins. At the beginning of the season, Ottawa was amazing and I had them pegged early as early winners of the Presidents Trophy - but over the past few months we have witnessed the team implode and narrowly make the dance. However, the playoffs are always a different story and I think that the intensity and urgency will be different for the Senators and they will be able to beat the highly-touted Penguins.

Trevor’s Pick: OTTAWA IN SIX

Alexander Ovechkin is the best pure goal scorer in the league today and his late season heroics has carried his team into the playoffs. The Caps are one of the Hottest teams in the East to finish the season and Ovechkin has this team charged up and ready to play playoff hockey. The regular season series between these two teams (2 wins and 2 losses each) is misleading and Washington should come out of this series victorious.

Trevor’s Pick: WASHINGTON IN SIX

This series is tough for me to predict and either team could end up winning. However, Martin Brodeur is a proven all-star and always shows up to play during the playoffs. He has the ability to steal the show and I think that he will eventually shut the door on the Rangers - although it won’t be an easy task. The New York Rangers always posess a threat offensively and my prediction could be wrong if Jagr, Drury, and Gomez all decide to show up.

Trevor’s Pick: NEW JERSEY IN SEVEN

Here we go, it’s playoff time! The time of the year when televisions in homes across the world are illuminated for hours each day with the exciting sport that is Hockey. Sports bars everywhere are filled with crazed hockey fans, cheering on their team and jeering the rival fans. And I go into hiding each night in front of my Television, remote in hand, flipping giddily between games.

This year, the Flames have the daunting task of taking on the San Jose Sharks, who have been outstanding lately with only three regulation losses in their last 23 games. The addition of Defenseman Brian Campbell at the trade deadline seems to have heightened the skill level the already extremely talented San Jose Sharks turning them into the hottest team down the stretch.

Although the Flames have a winning record this year against the Sharks (3-1), they are definitely the underdogs going into this series. The Flames slid butt-first into 7th place in the Western Conference (thanks Oilers!) and are really going to need to pick up their game play this first series if they want to move on. What do the Flames need to do if they want to win this series? (1) The Defense will need to be stellar and (2) the forecheck will need to be intense. (3) They will need at least their top 2 lines (3 would be nice) contributing to the scoresheet on a nightly basis and (4) they need to out-play the Sharks physically.

Go Flames Go!

The Vancouver Canucks obviously wanted this game more than the Calgary Flames did. They seemed to win all battles, and were first to all the pucks. The Flames “Jekyll and Hyde” play has plagued the team throughout the entire season and tonight was a terrible time for Hyde to show up. This was a crucial game for the Flames to keep their chances of first place in the Northwest division alive. Now they simply need to focus on making the playoffs.

I have 2 major complaints about the Flames in the game tonight:

First, laziness. Sure they played last night and I am sure they are tired, but all teams have to battle through that so that cannot be used as an excuse. At every turn, the Canucks were faster, smarter, and played harder than the Flames. Naslund’s goal in the first period and Linden’s goal in the second were a perfect examples of this. In both cases, the Flames should have been able to be the first to pounce on the rebound and clear the puck, however, in both situations, the Canucks player wanted it more and demonstrated it by picking up the rebound and scoring.

Second, the Flames played a very undisciplined game tonight. They let their emotions get the best of them and paid the price for doing so. The Canucks (very effectively) got under the skin of many of the Flames players. The team was short handed for almost the ENTIRE 3rd period and the final 6-2 score could have been much worse. Cory Sarich took 5 straight (stupid) penalties in the 3rd period. Even the captain joined in the goonery as he took 3 straight penalties purely out of frustration.

Now, I am an extremely competitive person and I have been known to let my temper flare during certain sporting events. But professionals at this level need to be able to retain their composure and not turn into goons when the get down by a few points. This only makes the team look bad while the opposing team looks like saints. Keenan needs to calm everyone down and come back as a composed group for the critical game versus the Oilers on Tuesday.

Go Flames Go!

Is there currently a better captain in the league? I mean, this guy can do it all - Scoring, passing, grinding, hitting, fighting and most importantly, he does all this while being a great leader and teacher to the rest of the team. He’s also regarded by his peers in the NHL (not just his teammates) as one of the classiest guys in the league.

Last night he treated the 19,000+ fans in the Saddledome to an outstanding show - demonstrating how skilled of a player he is by scoring a natural hat trick against the Minnesota Wild. With only 8 games remaining in the season (all against Northwest division rivals), Jarome Iginla knew how important this game was and he brought his “A” game. Everyone else on the team seemed to follow suit as the effort displayed was fantastic. This is what a great leader does… Lead by example.

With only 2 weeks left in the regular season, Jarome Iginla has my vote for the league’s MVP.

If anyone would have suggested to me 1 month ago that the Flames would be fighting for the 8th spot in the Western Conference at this time of the year I would have laughed hysterically. However, after a horrendous road trip, this is the situation they currently find themselves in. Picking up a measly 2 out of a possible 8 points on a trip where they played 4 teams who are out of the playoff picture has really put this team behind the 8 ball.

With only 9 games left in the regular season, the Flames desperately need to pick up their game. They need to abandon their lazy habits that have been slowly forming like a malignant tumor. The team seems to become less inspired with each game. In recent matches they have been badly out-shot, out-played, out-chanced, and out-worked. Down the stretch they will ultimately control their own destiny as their final 9 games are ALL against division rivals - 2 vs. the Avalanche, 2 vs. the Wild, 2 vs. the Oilers, and 3 vs. the Canucks.

Thursday’s game is critical. Historically the Flames have had problems against the Aves (last years playoff race instantly comes to mind). Let’s hope they can come out strong and get a big home win. That would be a giant step in the right direction for the team. The key to winning this game will be intensity. If the the entire team “shows up” and can put in 60 full minutes of intense hockey, and battle for every puck, they should be able to put this game in the win column. However, if they come out and play another lethargic game, and let the Ave’s control the play, then I fear it could get ugly. There is so much talent in the Colorado lineup that you can’t take your mind of the game for a minute or the puck will be in the back of your net.

Go Flames Go!

Sunday’s win against the Blackhawks was obviously a big one for the Flames. A loss in Chicago and there would have been some serious panicking in the Flames camp. The win places them in a 3-way tie for first place in the tight Northwest Division with Colorado and Minnesota. With only 10 games left in the season, every win is critical and every loss is painful.

Now, a win is a win, and I really shouldn’t complain but this team just doesn’t seem hungry enough. They don’t seem like a team that is ready for the playoffs. Like an unfocused sixth grader in science class, the Flames just can’t pay attention for the full 60 minutes. It’s either a strong start, and a lazy finish (as we witnessed on Sunday) OR they don’t start playing until halfway through the game (in which most games they are too far behind and can’t catch up).

Is it too much to ask to see a full 3 periods of quality hockey? Other teams can do it! With the caliber of players that are on the roster, the Flames should be considered an “elite” team, however, other elite teams seem to be able to play strong for the entire game.

Watch out - if the Flames can figure this out, they will be deadly!

Back in January, when the announcement was made that Curtis Joseph had been signed, I must admit, I was somewhat worried about the deal. A 40 year-old goaltender was not my idea of a great pickup. I had heard rumours that Joseph was looking to make a return to the NHL and Calgary was an option for him, but I didn’t think that the rumours would ever come to fruition.

Jump ahead 2 months… I think this is one of the best deals Darryl Sutter made this season. Why? Let me explain:

1. He has proven he is still a great goaltender. So far, Joseph has played 3 full games in a Flames uniform. His first (unfortunately) was against the Oilers in which the rest of the team forgot to show up. All 5 goals allowed were directly related to poor coverage in the defensive zone. I don’t think the score would have been any different had Kipper been between the pipes. The next 2 games vs. Dallas and Phoenix, Joseph has been superb and, in the case of the Dallas game, stole 2 points for the Flames.
2. He puts pressure on Kipper. Until the signing in Joseph, it really didn’t matter how poorly Kiprusoff played, he was still going to get ice time… and a lot of it. The other 2-3 backup goalies in the Flames system had such little NHL experience that Miikka was going to play no matter what. Now that Joseph is here, Kiprusoff knows that he is not an automatic starter. If his play degrades, Mike Keenan will have no problems letting him ride the pine for a few games while Joseph takes over.
3. He’s had tons of experience. This guy knows what it takes to win. He’s fourth on the NHL all time win list - which is an amazing accomplishment when you think of the talented goaltenders that have passed through the league. He’s also had a tremendous amount of experience in the playoffs and can pass this on to the younger players on the team.
4. He’s a leader in the locker room. Curtis Joseph has been around for a long time and has a tremendous amount of knowledge when it comes to playing in the NHL. He’s a leader for the young players on the team and has the ability to keep players calm in stressful situations. I predict we will Curtis Joseph in some sort of leadership role in the NHL after his playing career is over.