Let’s continue our preview of the 2008/09 season by taking a look at a guy who has the potential to put up some big points: Matthew Lombardi. As it happens, the Flames official site has pre-empted me with their recent article on Lombardi’s chances at a breakout season. Just see if that stops me.

Trevor and I talked about Lombardi over the summer, and I said that I hoped #18 was spending the summer with a tennis ball to work on his stick handling and breakaway moves. No question, Lombardi is among the most explosive skaters in the NHL; however, time and again last season he wasted breakaway opportunities simply by being unable to finish off scoring opportunities.

Given that Lombardi scored 57 goals in his final season of junior, we know he’s got a nose for the net, and based on his first goal of the preseason, we know he’s still got the hands. If Lombardi stays healthy and can start converting on his chances, I can see him scoring 40 goals this season. This is one guy that could be hugely entertaining to watch this year.

Things could be worse. Tomorrow is the final day of first round NHL playoff action, and up to this point the Flames are still alive. Games four and five were winnable hockey games for us, so we could be in better shape than we are, but given the pre-series outlook, a seventh game can hardly be considered disastrous.

So what does game seven mean? For Calgary, a loss would not be catastrophic. Disappointing, yes, but most pundits didn’t expect the season to last this long. The Sharks, on the other hand, have been perennial playoff blunders, seemingly unable to reach their potential on the NHL’s biggest stage. It’s safe to assume that big changes could be afoot in San Jose should they fall to the Flames tomorrow night. The same cannot be said of their counterparts. A first round departure would likely result in the typical minor off-season tweaks for which Darryl Sutter is known. But let’s not dwell on the “what if we lose” scenario. Instead, let’s ask “what do we need to do to win?”

Here are my keys to victory on Tuesday night:

• Shut down the stars - when the Sharks have been successful, it’s been on the efforts of Thornton, Cheechoo, and Marleau. The Flames can win this game if they continue to pay close attention to shutting those guys down.
• Keep the shots down - it’s hard to win games when you’re getting outshot 40-15. Make life easy for Kipper by keeping the shots down to low 20’s.
• Energy through all the lines - all four lines need to contribute, as they did last night. Guys like Lombardi, Nystrom, and Vandermeer providing a spark could be the difference.
• Let’s get physical - as we saw in game three, big hits can swing the momentum of a game. Laying the body to the Sharks early and often will set the right tone for the Flames.

There’s too much snow to golf, so let’s keep playing hockey!