On Thursday night, the Calgary Flames and San Jose Sharks got back into action for the first time since the Milano Cortina Olympic break.
While it was the young Sharks who came out with more jump and dominated the chances most of the night, it was the Flames who dominated the scoreboard, walking out of the SAP Center with a 4-1 victory in the first game of a back-to-back.
With the trade deadline right around the corner and an encouraging performance from the Flames, there’s plenty to take away from this one. Let’s get into it.
If there is any position to be most concerned about after a long three-week break, it would probably be the goaltender. The position is all based on timing, instincts, and rhythm, and after an extended break, it usually takes netminders a game or two to find their groove again.
Not Dustin Wolf. In the victory over the Sharks, he stopped 35 of 36 shots, with 10 of those coming on high-danger shots. By the final buzzer, he was credited with 1.79 goals saved above expected.
This is an encouraging sign for the Flames, considering Wolf’s rocky start to the season, followed by an outstanding month in December, then a regression and a dreadful final month before the break.
Wolf hasn’t played near the level that he did in his rookie campaign last season. However, he’s shown flashes. If you’re the Flames, you’ll want to see much more consistency out of him down the home stretch of the season, and he certainly got off on the right foot to do that against the Sharks.
Recently, on TSN’s Insider Trading, Darren Dreger said, “The Calgary Flames are still testing the market on Nazem Kadri, who, by the way, wants to be traded at this point.”
Related: Kadri Wanting to Be Traded is Great News for the Calgary Flames
While the trade rumours are nothing new, Kadri wanting to be traded was certainly a new wrinkle in the situation. Still, the Flames don’t seem completely sold on moving the veteran centre unless the offer is fair.
Well, the value of that fair offer could be on the rise over the next week, as, if you remember, Kadri had two multi-point games leading into the break, and now has another after scoring two goals against the Sharks Thursday night.
Kadri got the Flames on the board with a shot off the rush that few players can make in this league. No traffic from the top of the circles, he beat Yaroslav Askarov clean, picking the top corner. He then scored an insurance goal for the Flames, showing great patience in tight around the net.
Kadri is a dynamic offensive weapon who could solidify just about any contending team’s middle-six forward group. If he continues putting up these kinds of numbers, it’s hard to believe that a contender won’t cough up what the Flames are asking for to get a deal done here with the recent reports that Kadri may want to be moved.
In his third season in the NHL, Connor Zary has struggled to find a consistent place in the Flames’ lineup, largely due to a lack of an extended opportunity to play with other talented offensive players. He has been stuck playing limited minutes on the Flames’ depth lines, which have very little skill to help a player like Zary contribute.
Well, with Jonathan Huberdeau out for the season and Kadri and Coleman possibly being dealt, there will be plenty of opportunity for players to consistently earn these impact roles.
24-year-old Zary is one of the players who needs to be playing big minutes the rest of the season. On Thursday night against the Sharks, he scored a goal and added a helper on Kadri’s first goal of the game. On top of that, in just over 17 minutes, he had five shot attempts, four shots, four scoring chances, and two high-danger chances.
Zary was the fourth most used Flames forward on the night, and with all the possible impending moves, I think he needs a long leash with a lot of ice time. The Flames signed him to a multi-year contract extension this past offseason. They need to ignore the win-loss columns at this point and focus on maximizing the development of these pieces, who are the core of this rebuild.
The Flames have a busy weekend ahead; they will play the second half of a back-to-back on Friday night against the Los Angeles Kings, who will also be on no rest after losing 8-1 to the Edmonton Oilers Tuesday night.
They will then complete the California road trip, matching up with the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday night, completing three games in four days before they head back home for a three-game homestand.
As winners of three of their last four, it will be interesting to see if the Flames can continue a hot streak that seemed to be starting before the break.
Stats via Natural Stat Trick
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