R.I.P. defence, among other things

The Calgary Flames have given me little to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, apart from the fact that I managed to keep my turkey dinner down after learning the result of tonight's game.

The Flames came charging out of the gate on Thanksgiving/Columbus Day at the United Centre and scored five goals in just 5:29 in the first period. They entered the first intermission with a healthy four-goal lead, despite being outshot 16-10. The Flames, under the impression that the game was over, then packed up and went back to their hotel for a nice turkey dinner. The End. Little did they know, there was still two periods of hockey left to be played. The Blackhawks made the most of their opponents' disappearing act, scoring four unanswered goals to tie the game up at five, outshooting the visitors 40-20 in the process. They then went on to score the winner just 0:26 into overtime, on only their second shot of the short sudden-death period.

I return from a lovely weekend in Victoria and this is how Calgary decides to welcome me home? Frigid weather and news of the Flames blowing a huge lead and losing in overtime to the Blackhawks, one of the only teams outside of the Northwest Division that I hold such a high level of disdain for? What a shitty day to be a Calgary sports fan. Should we have been expecting this after a 4-0 start lulled us into a false sense of security? Yes, we probably should have seen the signs, heeded Coach Sutter's warnings. Shouldn't this team be improving every game, on their way to becoming the hard-nosed, defensive-minded squad that plays tough at both ends of the ice, the one that the GM and the new coaching staff promised we would see this off-season?

Instead, they are getting wildly outshot almost every game, giving up far too many good quality scoring chances, and are not playing anything that remotely resembles the physical, puck-possession game emphasized by the Sutters. I don't know what the hell is wrong with this team. I don't know why they become completely submissive when holding any sort of lead or why they can't play "Flames hockey" for sixty minutes, I don't know why they can't win a faceoff, I don't know what is wrong with Robyn Regehr, and I certainly don't know why the first line isn't clicking; but I do know that any team hoping to contend for a division title, a playoff spot, let alone a Stanley Cup Championship cannot blow a five goal lead and go on to lose the game in overtime. I don't want to come off as a drama queen, overreacting to every loss and every setback, but with the results of the last two games combined, I'm unnerved to say the least.

I don't really know how to treat this loss...a lesson to be learned, a fluke, a sign of things to come? Right now I still can't really believe it happened, even though scoring five quick goals seemed too good to be true, especially against a team like the Blackhawks, I hoped, however foolishly, that the good guys would emerge unscathed and victorious. I would like to have hope that the Flames will use this game as motivation, that they will come out flying and turn in a convincing effort against Steve Mason and the Blue Jackets tomorrow night (5 PM MT), but I can't seem to find any reason to at the moment.

I suppose we will see what this team is really made of tomorrow night. Will they come out kicking ass and taking names to avenge this embarrassing loss, or will they give up and fold like a broken lawn chair? I would very much like to believe the former.

The fact that two of the Flames' top-six forwards (Moss and Dawes) are now injured and Curtis McElhinney will likely get the start tomorrow night after Kiprusoff's 34-save performance does little to ease the feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach. The only positive I can extract from this steaming mess is that it happened in October and not April, which means there is still plenty of time for Brent Sutter to open up a can of whoop-ass forceful enough to ensure that this NEVER HAPPENS AGAIN.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to pop a few Advil and go to bed.

Post-game party: Quick notes from last night's game, Stars@Flames

The Flames improved upon their unbeaten record with a 4-3 shootout win over the Oilers last night in Edmonton, also improving to 2-0 in this season's edition of the Battle of Alberta. The Flames played a pretty solid first period until the last few minutes, when Ethan Moreau scored on a breakaway out of the penalty box. The Oilers would strike again with under a minute remaining, when Craig Conroy lost his man Lubomir Vishnovsky, who fired a slapper past Kiprusoff, who looked shaky in the opening frame, allowing two goals on nine shots.

The visitors played a much smarter game in the second despite being forced to kill off a penalty resulting from a hit by Jarome Iginla on Sheldon Souray where the Flames captain inadvertently tripped Souray while attempting to finish his check, causing both to collide into the end boards with Souray getting the worst of it. He was cut and later diagnosed with a minor concussion. This is the only video I could find of the hit, although I don't agree with the title:

The Flames would score a late goal to pull within one on a backhand by Daymond Langkow, and outshot the Oilers 9-4 in the middle frame with most of those shots coming on their three powerplays of the period, including a two-man advantage.

Nigel Dawes squared the affair at two early in the third, and it would stay that way until the Oilers again took the lead with just over six minutes remaining. In a late effort to preserve their record of zero regulation losses with Kiprusoff on the bench, Rene Bourque tied the game with only 1.5 seconds remaining, perfectly tipping a Bouwmeester slapshot between Khabibulin's pads.

The Oilers stole the show in the overtime period with Mark Giordano off for tripping, firing seven shots on Kiprusoff, but to no avail. The Flames 'tender snagged every shot he saw, making a series of spectacular glove saves and allowing no rebounds to give his team a shot at the 'W' in a shootout.

Nigel Dawes was the first shooter for the Flames, in their first shootout of the new season, and he scored after Sam Gagner's attempt was saved by Kipper. Patrick O'Sullivan tied things up for the Oilers, but Olli Jokinen, the Flames' next shooter, had a trick up his sleeve. He deked out Khabibulin several times before tucking a shot just inside the post, which trickled across the line with a little help from the Oiler goalie's pad. Ales Hemsky was the Oilers' last shooter, and fired a shot off the corner between the post and crossbar. Voila...Flames win!

The shots in this game ended up even at twenty-eight a piece, which ties the best effort in terms of shots the Flames have mustered this season. Their powerplay, which was operating at 75%, good for #1 in the league, was a futile 0-4 on the night. While a powerplay operating a such a high efficiency is clearly not sustainable, I think fans hoped for a better result against the Oilers' 29th ranked penalty kill unit.

This effort was probably the most consistent for the Flames as of yet, and maybe their best defensively. Robyn Regehr was the only player registering a minus on the team, as he continues to struggle. He was largely at fault on the Oilers' first goal and seems a lot easier to push off the puck than we are accustomed to. His passes seem ill-advised and his hits lack their usual "oomph"; I don't think we've seen a single instance of him knocking the wind out of Ales Hemsky as of yet.

The second line was the Flames' best line last night, with Dawes, Langkow, and Bourque scoring all of the team's goals in regulation. I think I already mentioned how much I love Rene Bourque. He collected a goal and two assists last night, and continues to be one of the Flames' best forwards. I just love everything about the way he plays... he's fast, strong, he wins battles, and he never gives up on a play.

The first line seems to be improving every game, although they didn't score, the trio of Iginla, Jokinen, and Moss were sharp last night, demonstrating their speed, strength, and crisp passing. All three were +1, and Jokinen was surprisingly good defensively after an abysmal effort in his own zone Tuesday against the Canadiens. The fourth line is just so good, and again created multiple chances, against the Oilers, although failing to score.

The Flames showcased the excellent transition game that they are capable of with Bouwmeester and Giordano providing speed and mobility on the blueline, and were able to control the neutral zone. The areas that remain a concern for the this team are faceoffs, which were again largely dominated by the opposition, and lazy play in their own end, which afforded the Oilers a number of quality scoring chances and resulted in trips to the penalty box.

Finally, news broke today that Oilers coach Pat Quinn has been fined $10,000 for his comments about Jarome Iginla made after the game. If that's not enough to teach him to keep his mouth shut, I don't know what is. Iginla told the Flames Insider that the trip was unintentional, and that he understands why the Oilers are upset and feels bad that Souray was injured on the play. Really, when have we ever seen Iginla intentionally injure someone, with the exception of fighting? I may come off as a homer, but I believe this was a genuine accident which took a freakish turn and looked a lot worse than it actually was.

Up Next: The Flames will aim for their first ever 5-0 start tonight when they host the Dallas Stars (0-0-2) at 7 PM (MT). The Stars and Flames split the series at two wins apiece last season. No word on whether or not Kiprusoff will start.

Post-game party: Nystrom spoils Cammy's return to the 'Dome, Flames make another weird trade

The Calgary Flames are 3-0 and tops in the Western Conference. Normally I would be delirious with joy, especially when you throw the fact that the Canucks are 0-3 into the mix. However, each Flames victory thus far has left something to be desired, whether it be less shots against, better defensive play, or a better performance from the first line.

The Flames trotted out onto the ice in their retro unis to face the Montreal Canadiens for the 100th time, and got off to a great start; they put a lot of pressure on the Canadiens, and took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Eric Nystrom just after the mid-way mark. The Flames were outshooting Montreal and playing a solid defensive game, until they scored the go-ahead goal.

After that, they got too wrapped up in trying to defend the lead and the mistakes started to pile up, resulting in Montreal's first goal with just over a minute left when the duo of Jarome Iginla and Olli Jokinen failed to clear the puck past former teammate Mike Cammalleri. Just thirty-seconds later, the Habs were again pouring on the pressure, and took the lead when Guillaume Latendresse swatted the puck into a yawning cage past Miikka Kiprusoff.

The Flames came out flying again in the second period and managed to maintain the pressure for most of the middle frame, outshooting Montreal 16-6 and taking a 3-2 lead on a goal by Iginla on the lone powerplay of the game after Nystrom squared the affair earlier in the period. The lead would not last, however, as Thomas Plekanec would tie it up with just ten-seconds remaining in the period after Robyn Regehr failed to stay with his man behind the net and allowed Plekanec to walk out in front of the net untouched, firing a backhand shot top-shelf on Kiprusoff. Three Montreal goals in the last minute of play in each of the first two periods does not instill much confidence in this team's ability to hold a lead.

Brent Sutter must have been furious during intermission, because the Flames came out firing on all cylinders again to start the third and were rewarded with a quick goal on a screened slap-shot that was originally thought to belong to Eric Nystrom, giving the winger his first career hat trick. The goal was later awarded to Staffan Kronwall for his first career NHL tally. It was all Montreal after that goal, however, as the Flames reverted back to dump-and-chase hockey, desperately clinging onto a one-goal lead. As a result, the Canadiens dominated, outshooting the Flames 15-5, but the home team retained the lead and held on for the 4-3 win thanks to some timely saves from Kiprusoff.

The thing that I do not understand is how this team can dominate the opposition for extended periods of time, but when they have the lead, they unravel and completely abandon the "system" that enabled them to get to that position--speed, strong forecheck, sustained pressure, getting pucks to the net, simple outlet passes, and keeping the opposition to the outside. I feel like I am beating this point to death but it is a recurring pattern that just drives me up the wall. The most worrying aspect seems to be that they are unable to clear the zone under pressure, which almost always leads to a goal or at the very least a crucial faceoff in the defensive zone--which, by the way, was an atrocious stat for the Flames in last night's game.

Turnovers in the defensive and neutral zones continue to be a problem and have led to a number of quality scoring chances against. Thankfully, the Flames have also been very good at forcing turnovers and creating scoring chances of their own. When picking out the positives in last night's game I found a few areas that I really liked--the Flames accumulated 28 shots on goal--the most so far, and allowed 30 against--the least so far, which is somewhat encouraging, they were very good at getting traffic to the net which was critical on all four goals, and they were very disciplined. The Flames didn't take a single minor penalty the entire game and scored on the lone powerplay they received--a hooking call on Max Pacioretty.

The play of the first line is still a contentious issue, as Iginla scored his first of the season on a good-looking backhand on the powerplay, showing his poise and patience with the puck. Moss was practically invisible after scoring two against the Oilers on Saturday, and Jokinen collected an assist but has yet to score. All three were -1, hovering around sixteen minutes of ice time. They probably would have got more if the Flames had had more powerplays, but Sutter continues to exercise his philosophy of no forward playing more than twenty-two minutes a game.

Can we all just appreciate the awesomeness of these vintage unis for a moment? I hope they make this their official third/alternate jersey, but I don't want it to be over-used like the Oilers' retro jersey.

The second line led all forwards in ice time at around twenty-minutes each, but had nothing to show for it in terms of points. They were very strong on the forecheck and in creating turnovers, especially Bourque, who was one of the best players on the ice for the Flames last night. I think I love him almost as much as Milan Lucic. The third line of Glencross-Conroy-Boyd also created a number of good scoring chances and Conroy was flying against his former team, but all three were snakebitten, especially Boyd, who had a series of excellent opportunities in the second.

The Nystrom-Sjostrom-Prust line, affectionately dubbed the "Prustrom" line, is golden and continues to generate whispers about the best fourth line trio in the league. Nystrom had an almost hat trick, Sjostrom an assist, and Prust, well he did this:

All three were plus players, the only forwards to finish on the positive side of things.

On defence, Adam Pardy was excellent, collecting two assists on the game-tying and game-winning goals, a +3 rating, and a highlight-reel worthy hit on Max Pacioretty. Staffan Kronwall, subbing in for Cory Sarich who is still day-to-day with a foot injury, was also surprisingly good, as he scored the game-winning goal, assisted on another, and finished a +2. Bouwmeester and Giordano were also very good, finishing even and +1 respectively. JBo led the team in ice time again, but at only 24:22, about five minutes less that he has been playing thus far.

The pairing of Regehr and Phaneuf continues to struggle, as both were -3. I thought that Phaneuf was slightly better and his rating was not necessarily indicative of his play, but Regehr seems to be on a different planet altogether. It is almost as if he is trying too hard to get involved in the play, advice which I'm sure he hasn't been getting from Brent Sutter, and doesn't seem to be able to keep track of his man in the defensive zone. He is losing puck battles and rather than punishing the opposing team's forwards, he seems to be getting pushed around.

Which brings me to my next point--injury. Bear with me here, but it is possible that either Regehr or Phaneuf or both are not entirely healthy or Sarich will be out for longer than anticipated, which might explain the move the Flames made today, sending Quad City's leading scorer last season Kyle Greentree to Chicago in exchange for defenceman Aaron Johnson. What other reason could Darryl Sutter possibly have for acquiring another defenceman, except perhaps to make up for the loss of Anton Stralman?

Kronwall has exceeded expectations as the sixth defenceman with Sarich out, but if one of the Flames' top blueliners wasn't 100%, Sutter could have easily called up someone like Seabrook, Pelech, or Negrin from Abbotsford to fill the void. This deal baffles me, as a few of Sutter's deals have recently. He is either putting one Hell of a package together for a top-six forward or is trying to assemble an entire team of defencemen. Whatever it is, he is taking the term defensive depth to the extreme, perhaps as a result of last season's parade to the sick bay down the stretch.

All in all, this was an entertaining game. The Flames showed that they are capable of sustaining pressure and playing within a defensive system for extended periods of time, just not a full sixty-minutes, they're not quite there yet. They showed some resilience in coming back from behind and didn't give up when Montreal came back to tie it, but still have a lot to improve upon from a consistency standpoint.

Up Next: The Flames travel to Edmonton again for Round 2 of the BOA tomorrow night (7:30 PM MT). Someone try to remind Khabibulin what team he plays for before puck drop.

Images courtesy of the Flames Insider

Game day musings--Habs@Flames

Mike Cammalleri will play his former team for the first time tonight as the Habs take on the Flames at the Saddledome tonight (7PM MT). Cammalleri joked that he would try and get Jarome Iginla to pass him the puck during tonight's game. The way Iginla's luck has been going so far, it might just work. Jaroslav Halak will start in goal for the Habs, who signed Marc-Andre Bergeron and called up defenceman Yannick Weber today to fill the Andrei Markov/Ryan O'Byrne-sized hole on their blueline. Bergeron is 5'9". Make of that what you will.

Mike Keenan and Anders Eriksson appeared on TSN's Off The Record yesterday afternoon. Once I stopped laughing and overcame the urge to curse at Eriksson for committing a ghastly turnover in the defensive zone, I settled in to witness one of the most forced exchanges of praise between two people since Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

Iron Mike went on to say that Robyn Regehr's comments "surprised the Hell out of me," and that Regehr had been very supportive of his coaching style earlier on in the season. Later in the show when Keenan was asked what member of the Flames was saddest to see him go, he replied "Craig Conroy." I don't know if Mike read either of the Calgary newspapers after his dismissal, but I seem to recall Conroy doing some trash-talking of his own.

As if Americans don't already think we're collectively off our rocker, CBC has spawned a Dancing-With-The-Stars type reality show featuring the likes of ex-NHLers Tie Domi, Bob Probert and Claude Lemieux and figure skaters Jaimie Sale and Marie-France Dubreuil called "Battle of the Blades," which is taped at the abandoned Maple Leaf Gardens. You know Canadians, including myself, are eating this shit up with spoon. I was positively giddy watching Ron McLean's forced comedy ( and no, he isn't any more entertaining when not being perpetually interrupted by Don Cherry) and Kelly Hrudey's awkward advances on the figure skaters. Last night's episode saw the pair of Kristina Lenko and Bob Probert eliminated, and as a result each can now disappear back into relative anonymity.

Milan Lucic signed a three-year extension with the Bruins today, which means three more years of this:

As you know by now from previous posts, I have been enamored with this kid ever since I saw him play in the Canada/Russia Super Series in 2007. I even picked him in the first round of my playoff pool last season and took a serious razzing for it, but he's a good, strong power forward with good hands, built for the playoffs. In my defence I was tied for first place for a few days before taking a nosedive to second-last, but I digress. This signing fuels further speculation that I may be a closet Bruins fan.

The Calgary Herald rolled out the "What's Wrong With Iggy?" headline today, two games into the season. I think that may be a new record.

It appears that Team Canada's goaltending tandem at the 2010 Winter Olympics may not include the names Brodeur and Luongo. It is early days yet, but both star goalies have struggled to start the season, posting 4.03 and 4.55 GAA, respectively. Cam Ward isn't doing much better, with a SV% of .891 and a 4.04 GAA. That leaves Steve Mason and Marc-Andre Fleury to duke it out for the job. Steve Yzerman and Team Canada management are expected to start scouting prospective Olympic candidates in the near future.

Post-game party: Khabibulin's epic fail=Flames victory

Fans of Northwest Division rivalries didn't have to wait long for the bad blood to surface in the new NHL season. The Flames played their second straight game against said divisional rivals in Edmonton last night, and it yielded some interesting results. I caught bits and pieces of the game at work, but it seemed fairly evident that there is an early pattern emerging here, and not in a good way. It is not entirely fair to say that the Flames don't deserve their spotless 2-0 record, but there has been a significant element of luck involved in both victories. Again last night, the Flames escaped the first period with the lead, despite being outshot 14-6.

In the second, Nigel Dawes notched an early goal to put the visitors up 3-1, but the Oilers carried the play for the remainder of the period, again outshooting the Flames 11-6 and scoring a late goal to cut Calgary's lead to one, which really seemed to put the Flames "back on their heels," as they say in the broadcast biz--vis-a-vis the worrying pattern I was referring to. Early in the third, it was evident that the young Oilers smelt blood.

The Flames were overrun by the Oilers' speedy forwards in their own zone and were unable to corral the loose puck on several occasions, eventually resulting in the tying goal scored by Sam Gagner, who was the lucky beneficiary of a failed clearing attempt that ricochet off the end boards onto his waiting stick.

Mark Giordano ended up wearing the goat horns on the play, unfortunately, as he was the initiator of said failed clearing attempt. The Flames picked up their play a bit after that, but still gave up a number of quality scoring chances. Thankfully, Kiprusoff was up to the task and stopped the remainder of the shots he faced. With under a minute left in the final frame, it looked as if the first round of the Battle of Alberta was headed to OT, but then something wonderful happened:

It appears Nikolai Khabibulin's mastery over the Flames vanished in a puff of smoke the instant he scrawled his name on a contract with the Edmonton Oilers. Funny how that happens. Anyways, this is a prime example of the luck that the Flames have been on the receiving end of the past two games, and clearly this won't be the norm for the remainder of the season. While everyone seemed to agree that there would be an adjustment period as Brent Sutter enforced his new system, there have been little signs of progress so far in terms of puck possession and limiting shots against. It has not been all bad, as is evident from the team's 2-0 record, but there are several areas that seem to have raised a red flag around the interweb:

- The play of the first line, with the exception of David Moss, has garnered some criticism thus far, and rightfully so. Iginla and Jokinen have one point apiece and the chemistry that seemed to be emerging during pre-season has all but disappeared. We are used to slow starts from the Captain around here, but seeing as the Flames' offensive depth has been questioned since the off-season loss of Mike Cammalleri, the general sentiment was that Olli and Jarome would both need to crank it up a notch. It is early days yet, but expect to see some line-tinkering by B. Sutter if this trend continues.

- Robyn Regehr has been...how do I put this nicely?...crap. After a parade to the penalty box in the season opener, Regehr was a -2 last night in Edmonton and his hits seemed awkwardly timed and ineffective, a rarity for the big blueliner renowned for his physical play. He even fell victim to a hit from Dustin Penner of all people, culminating in my favourite line of the night from CP: "Robyn Regehr was the recipient of a huge dump by Dustin Penner, who threw the hulking Flames rearguard down like an empty box of doughnuts."

- Daymond Langkow has also been uncharacteristically quiet thus far, and was a -2 in last night's game. He seems to be the weakest link on a line with Bourque and Dawes at the moment.

Now, the good:

- Is it too early to declare my unrequited love for Jay Bouwmeester? The slick d-man collected two assists on his way to a +1 rating and thirty minutes of ice time against the Oil.

- Hit The Post brought up an interesting point about the length of Dion Phaneuf's shifts in relation to his effectiveness. Hopefully once Cory Sarich returns to the lineup, he will be taken off the first pairing and able to make smarter, quicker decisions with and without the puck if he isn't so overworked.

- Miikka Kiprusoff continues to impress early on, with another 30+ save performance at Rexall without much help from his blueline brigade. Even if Kipper is in the best shape of his career and churns out another respectable season, there will undoubtably be nights when he is slightly off and the Flames' defence will need to be more responsible than they have been thus far

Up Next: Cammy and the Canadiens (2-0-0) make their lone stop at the Saddledome on Tuesday in a battle of undefeated teams. Cory Sarich is expected to return after missing the previous two games with a bruised foot, and the Flames D will need to be in top shape against the speedy (insert size joke here) Habs.

O Canada! Support our Olympic athletes in style

When you think Team Canada Olympic apparel, fleece and unsightly sweatpant/sweatshirt combinations are probably the first items that come to mind, right? Well not this year, my friends. It seems that Vancouver 2010 has inspired HBC to get their act together and produce clothing that Canadian athletes and supporters will be proud to wear come February. I'll leave it up to you blogosphere folk to judge, but I am absolutely in love with the Olympic collection, especially these red mittens (pictured above). The net proceeds from the purchase of these totally adorable mittens goes towards supporting Canadian athletes, and they're only $10.00! I can't wait to get my hands on, or I suppose in, these! Here are a few other pieces from the collection that I really like:

I love this chunky knit sweater with the moose and maple leaf pattern, it's so kitschy and unabashedly Canadian. The long-sleeved henley tee and the black short-sleeved "True North Strong and Free" tee are perfect for layering and the parka and hat are quintessential for keeping warm on those chilly Whistler slopes or in the crowd at GM Place while cheering on Canada's gold medal hopefuls. I think it is safe to say that The Bay will be the sole beneficiary of my next pay cheque!

Post-game Party: Flames 5, Canucks 3

Somewhere in the Saddledome, Miikka Kiprusoff is cursing his defencemen and anticipating another long season. The Flames' #1 'tender was forced to make thirty-nine saves against the Vancouver Canucks as the team narrowly escaped with their first 'W' in a home opener since 2001.

The atmosphere was electric as the Flames stepped onto out the ice in their vintage duds in front of a sold out crowd, and the home team seemed to ooze confidence early on. The Flames got off to a good start and showed a lot of jump in the opening minutes, drawing two penalties from the sluggish Canucks and capitalizing on both powerplays to take a 2-0 lead eight minutes in with goals from Giordano and Bourque.

The boys in red would hold the early advantage in the hits department as well as the scoresheet, with Eric Nystrom and Dion Phaneuf both dishing out monstrous hits in the opening frame. Phaneuf energized the crowd and drew the ire of many a Canuck late in the period when he caught Daniel Sedin with his head down just outside the Flames' blueline. Calgary would enter the first intermission with a comfortable 3-0 lead thanks to an even-strength tally by Adam Pardy. The best part of the period, however, was when the HNIC crew compared Luongo's shaky play to his infamous 7-goals-against performance in Game 6 of the Western Conference semis...ouch.

After a quick breather, the Canucks would score on a powerplay of their own early in the second to cut the Flames' lead to two. Brandon Prust would restore the three-goal cushion after scoring on a spectacular individual effort deep in the offensive zone. The Flames started to lose their cool midway through the second period as the Canucks poured on the pressure; undisciplined play led to two straight minor penalties and Vancouver would capitalize on the latter with under two minutes left to play in the second.

The Flames took a two-goal advantage into the third period, but that would prove to be short-lived. Just 0:41 into the final frame, super-pest extraordinaire Alex Burrows scored on a shot that Kiprusoff looked to have under control, but the puck would trickle across the line as #34 leant back to try and smother the loose disc. The Flames 'D' appeared to be MIA during said play and were unable to clear the puck after a series of fumbled opportunities. It was at this moment that I was first tempted to change the channel, but I resisted.

The Canucks would continue to skate circles around the Flames and cycle the puck like nobody's business, at one point the shots were 17-1 in favour of the Vancouverites. I think the Canucks must have spent a total of about fifteen minutes in the Flames' zone in the third period, causing me to utter a string of profanities I won't repeat on this here blog. Thankfully, Kipper, possessed by the spirit of his former Vezina-winning self, saved the day with a series of other-wordly saves to preserve the 1-goal lead.

When Daymond Langkow was sent to the sin bin for hooking with just over six minutes remaining, I finally flipped the channel to Grey's Anatomy. I don't even watch that show. After taking a few minutes to collect myself, I cautiously flipped it back to find out that the Flames had actually managed to kill off the penalty. Shortly thereafter, the Canucks pulled Luongo for the extra attacker and I briefly flipped back to GA before Dion Phaneuf rifled a slapper into the empty net to seal the victory for the Flames.

The Flames' second and fourth lines had the best showing of the forward bunch, with the trios of Bourque-Langkow-Dawes and Nystrom-Sjostrom-Prust generating the most chances. Prust and Bourque were especially outstanding. Mark Giordano was the Flames' best blueliner, finishing +1 with a goal and an assist, while Jay Bouwmeester was also very steady, leading the team in ice time and finishing the evening a +2. Kiprusoff was spectacular and cannot really be faulted on any of the Canucks' goals, except perhaps the third one. He single-handedly held his team in the game and provided stability on the frantically scrambling back-end in the third period. Hopefully that trend continues throughout the season.

Overall, I am happy with the win, but again, I wish it had come in a more consistent fashion. After controlling the play for the first period and a half, the Flames let the game get away from them and were badly outplayed, getting outshot by a 3-1 margin in the third period and 42-22 overall. Brent Sutter again reiterated the fact that they still have a lot of work to do and repeated essentially the same quote that I used in an earlier post pertaining to the Flames spending too much time in their own zone and allowing the other team to take over, resulting in over-reliance on a certain goaltender.

The fact that B. Sutter recognizes the problem areas is a good start, but how will he address them? Undoing years of lax defensive play and bad habits is not going to happen overnight, I realize that, but I sincerely hope the message gets through sooner rather than later and I don't have to hear a re-tooled version of this speech during every post-game media session in the near future.

Elsewhere in the League:

- Sakic's retirement ceremony was not quite the tear-jerker I was expecting

- Dany Heatley finished his first game in Sharks silks with zero points and a -3 rating as SJ falls to the lowly Avs 5-2. How long before he wants out? Over/under?

- The Bruins stunk up the joint in a 4-1 loss to the Caps in their home opener. Ovechkin scored twice. Typical.

- I still like Mike Cammalleri, even as a Canadien

Up Next: Round 1 of the Battle of Alberta goes down Saturday night at Rexall Place. Quick, somebody hide Nikolai Khabibulin's Gatorade!