CALGARY — After doing it the hard way lately with comeback after comeback, the Calgary Flames finally got off to a better start on Monday and they were justly rewarded.
Second-period goals 36 seconds apart from Mikael Backlund and Jonathan Huberdeau broke open a scoreless game as the Flames beat the Los Angeles Kings 3-1.
“That was a full 60 minutes from our group and that’s what we should expect from ourselves,” said rookie goaltender Dustin Wolf, who made 29 stops to improve to 5-2-1. “We when we play like that, we put ourselves in an opportunity to win each and every night.”
Calgary (8-5-3) has points in four straight (2-0-2) to move within two points of the Pacific-leading Kings (9-5-3).
Entering Monday, only the San Jose Sharks (-14) had a worst first-period goal differential than Calgary (-9), but the home side turned in a much better opening 20 minutes on this night, outshooting the visitors 10-7 and generating a bunch of dangerous chances.
While the opening 20 minutes ended scoreless, the Flames rode that aggressive momentum into the second.
“We talked about ‘let’s try and score the first goal of the night’ and play with the lead,” said Connor Zary, who had three of his game-high five shots in that opening period, while also sending a shot off the crossbar.
“It was really good by us to get in that full 60. That was a lot like how we started the year.”
Leading from start to finish was a different script for the Flames who were forced to come from behind in all three games on their road trip.
On Saturday in Buffalo, they fell behind 2-0 after one, only to battle back with two in the third before losing in a shootout.
On Thursday in Boston, Calgary trailed 3-1 after two, but got it back to even before falling in overtime.
Last Tuesday in Montreal, the Flames were down 2-1 into the final three minutes before pulling out a 3-2 victory.
“We’ve talked about our starts a lot, especially on that road trip, we knew as a team, we came out flat and had to claw back and climb back,” said Zary.
“Obviously we’ve been good at that, playing from behind, but we really wanted to come out and have a start and get a lead.”
It was just past the midway point in the second when Backlund’s unassisted goal broke the ice. The Flames captain pounced on a Kings’ giveaway that popped into the slot and whipped a shot into the top corner on Darcy Kuemper.
Next shift, Andrei Kuzmenko’s nifty pass put Huberdeau on a breakaway and his team-leading sixth goal would end up being the game-winner.
“I said this morning that we needed to start on time and be all over them, and that’s what we did,” said Huberdeau. “Doing it over and over, it wears them down.”
At the time of Huberdeau’s goal, Calgary held a 20-10 edge in shots.
“We were just simple,” said Zary. “We started right from the first shift, getting on the forecheck. I think that’s what’s huge for us. That’s our game is to keep it simple and get that going, and then keep making plays from there, once we get in the offensive zone.”
Wolf says Monday was the team’s formula for success.
“If we have starts like that, we’re gonna put ourselves in good position to, one, win the period, and set ourselves up for the next,” said the 23-year-old goaltender.
While Wolf lost the bid for his first NHL shutout with 2:31 to go in the third when Trevor Moore’s sharp-angle shot, upon video review, was ruled to have crossed the line before being cleared away, he was singled out coach Ryan Huska for his night’s work.
“I thought he was awesome tonight,” said Huska. “I was hoping that one he could have maybe found a way to keep out because he deserved to not let anything get by him the way he was playing tonight.
“But really good effort from him, and I thought he was a guy that gave our team a lot of confidence in front of him.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 11, 2024.
Darren Haynes, The Canadian Press