First rule of pessimism: Prepare for the worst and you'll never be disappointed

I didn't see any of the Flames' last game in Phoenix (thanks, Sportsnet...kissing the NFL's ass) but it doesn't seem like I missed much. This game sounds like it was almost an exact replica of the one played between the two clubs last time they met at the 'Dome in mid-November, only the Flames came out on the losing end of things this time around when Taylor Pyatt danced around Mark Giordano and put the winning goal five-hole on a confused Kiprusoff in the dying minutes of the game. Perhaps all that praise was a little premature. We still love you Gio. Everyone's alllowed one fuck-up, that was yours. Losing to the Coyotes doesn't carry the same stigma as it once did, but the loss still stings after this team looked so good in their rout of the Predators earlier in the week.

Bourque led the team in shots on goal with four in his return from injury, which speaks volumes of the Flames' offensive effort on Thursday. His linemates Iginla and Jokinen registered one and three shots, respectively. Given the heroics of Kiprusoff in this game, the Flames probably deserved a better fate, but it's in the past now so let's suck it up and prepare to get blown out of the water by the Sharks.

First rule of pessimism: prepare for the worst and you'll never be disappointed.

Thinking about this game, against the best team in the league, in their building, against the best line in hockey, makes me feel physically sick. Memories of last season's January victory at the Shark Tank, San Jose's first home regulation loss of the season, which artificially cemented the Flames' status as a Western Conference elite come to mind. That might have also been the last time I was so nervous about a regular season game. I will be more than satisfied with an overtime loss, if the Flames are lucky enough to push the game into extra time.

Needless to say they will have to get off to a good start and capitalize on their opportunities; playing catch-up against a team of the Sharks' calibre on the road is not advisable. Kiprusoff and the Flames defence will surely be tested often, and need to be at the top of their respective games. The Flames held an optional skate this morning so it will be interesting to see if Sutter adjusts the defence pairings for the purpose of tonight's match-up. The forward lines appear unchanged.

One stat that jumps out when comparing these two teams is faceoff percentage. I have been whining about the Flames' ineptitude in the faceoff circle for quite some time now, and it doesn't seem to be improving--in fact, they now sit dead last in the league in faceoff percentage at 46.8% while the Sharks are first with a 56.3% success rate. The Flames' best option on the dot is Dustin Boyd--operating at 50.5%. While Sutter, a go-to faceoff man in his day, claims the team is working on faceoff strategies, this is quite the fall from grace for a squad that ranked eighth in the league in the same category last season.

By the way, Joe Thornton is on a ten-game point streak. Kill me now.

Game time is 8PM on CBC. Heatley is a game-time decision with flu-like symptoms.

Go Flames Go.

Game day musings--BORK BORK BORK

I awoke today like a kid on Christmas morning, eager to find out if Rene Bourque would be suiting up for the Flames tonight against the Desert Dogs, and to my utter delight I found out that he will be. Not only will good ol' #17 return to the lineup this evening, but he will be playing on the first line, fulfilling the dreams of Flames fans since the 2009-10 season began two months ago. The second line of Dawes-Langkow-Moss has found undeniable chemistry in Bourque's six-game absence, particularly Moss and Dawes, who has goals in each of his last four games, and I see no reason to break them up at this point in time.

Lundmark has been sent down to Abbotsford with the return of Rene, and has reinforced his reputation as a reliable farmhand with three points in six games with the big club and a shootout winner in Columbus. We thank you for your services, Jamie, but I think we are all terribly excited to see Bourque back in action this soon. While it will be tough for Bourque to regain his team scoring lead after Jarome "Star of the Month" Iginla took over with a too-hot-to-handle November, I expect him to pick up where he left off, and hopefully he will be rewarded with a new contract sooner rather than later.

The Flames are in Phoenix today for their second meeting of the season with the 'Yotes. Apparently Jim Vandermeer is some kind of clutch offensive performer now. Who knew? Cory Sarich remains at home in Calgary with a lower-body injury, likely something to do with the foot injury that was troubling him earlier this season, and the fact that the Flames have been successful without him thus far further fuels speculation that he could be part of a deal for a top-six forward. With Sarich out, Giordano has been promoted to the second pairing with Jay Bouwmeester, and seems to be a perfect fit. Both are agile and handle the puck well, with Gio, who recorded twenty-four hits in November, holding the physical edge over Bo, who blocked twenty-one shots in the aforementioned month. Team Awesome!

Phoenix has won two straight games and is 8-5-0 at home, while the Flames have won four straight and tied a franchise record for points in ten straight road games with their 5-0 man-handling of the Nashville Predators on Monday night, good for a record of 10-1-3 away from the 'Dome. This is utterly mind-boggling to me, considering how notoriously crappy the Flames have been on the road in recent seasons, and I'm wondering if this is simply a result of the coaching change or if something has really changed in the team's overall psyche.

The Flames' powerplay has shown signs of life in recent games, moving up to a respectable ninth in the league, while the penalty kill continues to operate at a rate of 87.3% on the road, having allowed only seven powerplay goals in fourteen road games. All predictions I've read for this game have the Flames winning either 3-1 or 4-1, but I don't think it'll be that easy, despite their record of dominance in Glendale. Given the play of Kiprusoff (2.27 GAA, .925 SV%) and Bryzgalov (2.12 GAA, .919 SV%) , I expect a close game which may even go into extra time.

In other news, Jiri Tlusty was traded by the Leafs today to the Hurricanes in exchange for prospect Phillipe Paradis. So long, Jiri. Your antics and subsequent embarrassing photos provided me with cheap laughs and endless minutes of entertainment. Enjoy life in the AHL. Then again, the 'Canes offensive depth is so miserable that you might just get a shot.

The Lines/Pairings

Bourque-Jokinen-Iginla

Dawes-Langkow-Moss

Glencross-Conroy-Nystrom

Sjostrom-Boyd-Prust/McGrattan

Regehr-Phaneuf

Bouwmeester-Giordano

Johnson-Pardy

Kiprusoff

Game time is 7:30 PM on Flames PPV

Post-game Party: Ghosts of Coyotes past

The Flames touched down in Calgary briefly last night for a game against the Phoenix Coyotes which resembled a big 'ol somewhat incestual family reunion--these two teams have exchanged players more often than Elisha Cuthbert--so naturally, certain individuals had a chip on their respective shoulders.

After a lacklustre first period in which the Flames took back-to-back penalties and were outshot 11-7, they turned it around in a hurry in the second, outshooting Phoenix 11-4. The Coyotes had been slow getting to loose pucks in their own zone all evening, and the Flames finally capitalized late in the second, as Curtis Glencross feathered a perfect pass to Daymond Langkow, uncontested in the slot, who promptly fired home his eighth goal of the season to give the Flames a 1-0 lead.

The third period was a little more back and forth, but the Flames were obviously playing it safe and trying to protect the lead, which resulted in them getting hemmed in their own zone for long stretches as Phoenix pressed for the equalizer, which they eventually got on a powerplay midway through the final frame.

A breakdown in communication between the Flames' penalty killers Nystrom and Glencross left the Coyotes' Keith Yandle with an open shooting lane from the point, and he blasted a shot past a screened Kiprusoff to square the affair at one. The Flames would respond just over four minutes later; David Moss, engaged in a battle behind the net, managed to win possession of the puck and, doing his best Gretzky impersonation, fired a slick no-look pass to a wide-open Nigel Dawes, who made no mistake on his fifth of the season and first in thirteen games.

Dawes' tally put the nail in the coffin for his former team and propelled the Flames to a 2-1 victory, finally putting a stop to the team's four-game losing streak on home ice. Daymond Langkow also chipped in against his old mates, and led all Flames forwards in ice time at 20:30. Lanks was everywhere against the 'Yotes; killing penalties, forcing turnovers, scoring, assisting, you name it, and was named the game's first star as a result. While it is not surprising that the Flames second line again fulfilled the lamp-lighting duties, it is surprising that they continued to do so without Rene Bourque. David Moss appears to be fitting in nicely with his new linemates.

Olli Jokinen's effort against his former squad was nowhere near as inspiring as that of his teammates, as he was more of a liability than anything else--I counted at least two sequences where he turned over the puck, once in the offensive zone off an ill-advised pass and once more in the neutral zone. The latter was particularly atrocious as it lead to a dangerous scoring chance by Shane Doan and forced Kiprusoff into a hard and very uncomfortable-looking save, one of his twenty-seven in the game. After what was one of his better games of the season, if not his best, against the Ducks, it appears we are back to square one with Joker.

On the defensive side of things, it was somewhat of a tough night for the Flames' blueliners. I don't know if anyone else thought that Bouwmeester struggled a bit--he wasn't terrible by any means but his positioning was slightly off and he was a little slow getting to loose pucks; I counted two giveaways on his part and one sequence where he overskated the puck, opting to take an opposing player into the end boards instead. Phaneuf's lack of effort in his own zone was again glaringly obvious last night, as I noted that he was successful in winning possession of the puck and exiting the defensive zone only once.

I know I'm a little late to the party on the Phaneuf v. Sutter v. Other Unnamed Flames Player rumour mill, but issues in the dressing room can sink a team and compromise its season, as we all saw last year with the Montreal Canadiens. While the issue will likely never be directly addressed by the organization, I certainly hope the Flames are able to sort it out sooner rather than later, if there is any truth to these rumours whatsoever.

The Flames landed in Detroit today where they'll begin a season-high six-game road trip (5:00PM, Sportsnet) with stops in Columbus, Nashville, Phoenix, San Jose, and Los Angeles. With the Flames currently one point back of first place in the Northwest, the importance of this road trip cannot be stressed enough. This team has exceeded expectations away from the Saddledome, but every team they face on this trip will present a challenge, some more than others, and games against Detroit and San Jose could be of the "measuring stick" variety.

Tomorrow's matchup with the Wings will be difficult and it may not be pretty. Let's hope for the best.

Go Flames Go.

BOA Round 3 preview/assortment of miscellaneous thoughts

The Flames continue their five-game homestand tomorrow night in the third installment of this season's Battle of Alberta and the first on home ice. The Flames are tied for second in the Northwest with their provincial rivals at 6-2-1, and it goes without saying that this is a big game. We all hope to see a follow-up of the resilient effort we witnessed Tuesday against Columbus, and I envision this game going one of two ways:

1) The Oilers come out flying, full of energy fueled by their comeback win against the very same Blue Jackets last night and filled with a thirst for Jarome Iginla's blood. The Flames, who haven't played since Tuesday, look unprepared and lethargic, surrender two quick goals to Edmonton and are forced to play catch-up.

2) The young Oilers get carried away with their bloodlust and succumb to undisciplined play. Stortini and MacIntyre goon it up and the Flames capitalize.

The Oil are clearly still ticked about the "cheap" play that resulted in Sheldon Souray sustaining a concussion, and expressed their feelings in a segment on Sportsnet news where Pat Quinn attempted to clear his name from his media mud-slinging of Iginla a few weeks back. It's understandable, a head injury is serious business--just ask Darcy Tucker--but Iginla has made it clear that he had no intent to injure Souray, and the play was simply an unfortunate result of the fast-paced nature of the game. Whatever the Oilers need to get motivated for the game, I suppose.

Players to watch out for: Dustin Penner--no, you're not hallucinating. Penner collected five points Thursday against the Blue Jackets; Pat Quinn must have promised him a box of Krispy Kremes after the game. Penner has seven goals and seven assists for a total of fourteen points this season, and has been compared to a "young Todd Bertuzzi." Watch your necks, boys, he might snap at any moment.

Edmonton will no doubt ice an enforcer or two in tomorrow's game, so watch for McGrattan and/or Prust to go up against the likes of Stortini and MacIntyre. Jarome Iginla will no doubt have to defend himself against the Oilers' fists of fury--which we all know he's capable of, but would undoubtably rather see the captain pick up where he left off Tuesday, with three points and a +3 rating against the Blue Jackets. The Flames will have to make sure they match the Oilers' intensity to start the game, and Iginla has to be a big part of that.

Elsewhere in the league...

Sergei Gonchar is expected to be out for at least a month with a broken wrist. That's two Russian defencemen down; it appears Operation Take-Out-Potential-Russian-Olympians is nicely underway. Time to start going after the big guns--start hacking away at Ovechkin's ankles Bobby Clarke style, pay off Todd Bertuzzi to take out Pavel Datsyuk during practice and make it look like an accident...the possibilities are endless.

Speaking of Ovechkin, he was fined $1,000 today for his slew-foot on Atlanta's Rich Peverley a day after Evgeni Artyukhin was suspended for three games following a similar play. We all know that a double-standard exists in the NHL regarding punishment of star players and that repeat offenders will be punished more severely than first-timers, but this isn't the first time Ovechkin has disregarded the NHL rulebook. Remember his knee-on-knee hit on Sergei Gonchar in the playoffs? Ovechkin didn't receive so much as a slap on the wrist from the league on the play which tore the Pens blueliner's MCL, and is now being treated as if this is his first offence. I'm all for playing with an edge, but as a player you have to know where to draw the line.

Most people were of the opinion that the Minnesota Wild would struggle to implement new head coach Todd Richards' up-tempo, offence-first system, but not to this degree. Not only can the formerly stingy Wild not find the back of the net, they can't seem to keep the puck out of theirs. With Havlat injured, I wonder if Minny would be willing to take Olli Jokinen off our hands? Half-price...?

Lastly, the Phoenix Coyotes beat the Wings in overtime last night with goals from Matthew Lombardi and Adrian Aucoin. I'll let you mull that one over.

Could it be? Tanguay finally chooses a team and Saturday's rumour roundup

Is summer over yet? You know I'm getting desperate when I start posting pictures of Mats Sundin's wedding, courtesy of the Toronto Sun:

Tie Domi and Peter Forsberg. I'm guessing that's not Belinda Stronach 

Daniel Sedin with his wife and agent. Henrik wasn't invited. 

Mats and bride Josephine Johansson. Good to see he's finally settling down with a nice Swedish gal

Hallelujah! After fielding offers from what seemed like all 30 NHL teams, Alex Tanguay has finally decided on a destination (and you thought Heatley was picky). After almost two months of toiling on the free-agent market, RDS is reporting that Tanguay has signed a 1-year deal with the Lightning which will see him earn around $2 million, pending a physical. 

Fellow Quebecers Martin St-Louis and Vincent Lecavalier helped lure the velvet-handed winger to the Sunshine State, where he accepted a significant pay cut after two seasons marred by injuries and decreased production. If Tampa gets consistent goaltending from Mike Smith and its squabbling owners agree to an amicable separation, they may be able to pull one over on a few Eastern squads this season. 

Now that that's over and done with, we can all turn our attention to Heatley and his possible trade to the LA Kings, the ongoing Coyotes debacle, and Peter Forsberg's pending comeback. 

NHL Countdown: 33 days 

Because it's a rainy August afternoon

Dear Dany Heatley,

Please stay out of the Northwest Division. If you could avoid the Western conference altogether, that would be great too. I know you're supposedly head-over-heels for some girl out here, but if she feels the same I'm sure she'll make the trip to Ottawa or New York or wherever you end up. 

Yours truly,

Hayley xoxo

The Canucks have reportedly rescinded their interest in Heatley because the asking price was too high. Now, in a bizzare twist of fate, the Minnesota Wild are supposedly preparing to take a stab at landing the star winger. The only Northwest Division teams that haven't been in on the Heatley bidding wars are the Flames and Avs. 

Now onto the daily Tanguay Report: he has apparently narrowed his list down to the Lightning and the Coyotes. Excellent choices, Alex. The decision making process must be taking so long because he is unable to determine which franchise is losing less money.  I can't imagine what is more attractive to a player--bankruptcy or internal squabbling? Looks like Mr. Tanguay likes a little drama with his hockey. 

Reading The Hockey News' Ultimate Fantasy Pool Guide has got me motivated to do much better in my playoff pool this season. The Ultimate Guide to Skaters has projected both Phaneuf and Bouwmeester to enjoy bounce-back seasons with 61 and 51 points respectively.  Interestingly enough, their goalie projections have McBackup earning 7 wins this season; not sure if this will be due to improved defensive play, improved coaching, or more opportunity (unlikely). 

NHL Countdown: 48 days