EDMONTON – If Calgary Flames fans found the final minute of Tuesday’s 3-2 win over Dallas particularly excruciating, imagine the seat Mark Giordano sat in to watch it.
Whistled for a delay of game penalty for inadvertently firing the puck over the glass with 49 seconds left, the team’s best penalty killer sat helplessly in the sin bin.
“It’s a horrible feeling doing that and putting the team short,” said the Flames captain.
“I had a lot of confidence in the guys, but still, maybe said a prayer or two in the box hoping that we’d kill that one off. That’s a pretty tough spot to be in, but guys stepped up and it was a huge kill.”
A late power-play goal by the Stars certainly could have flipped the narrative of a run that has the Flames feeling on top of the world with three straight wins.
It’s no secret they’ve done it largely with a newfound focus on defence and physicality. However, special teams have also played a massive role, as their last-minute kill clearly illustrated.
After finishing 12th during the regular season, the Flames power play tops all 24 teams in the playoff tourney at 33.3 per cent. To put that into perspective, the Oilers led the regular season with a 29.5 per cent rate that had the league abuzz.
The penalty killing units are operating at an 89.5 per cent efficiency rate, which puts them third amongst teams remaining in the first round.
“Our kill has been doing a great job – when a guy gets out of the box without scoring it gives your team a boost in momentum,” said Sean Monahan, who has three of his team-leading six points on the power play.
“When the power play goes out there you have that confidence – you’re trying to score and create momentum. We’re getting good looks and putting the puck in the back of the net.
“Whether it’s my unit or [Mikael Backlund’s] unit, both units are producing and that goes a long way. Special teams are huge this time of year.”
Coach Geoff Ward, who arrived in Calgary two years ago with a reputation as a power-play specialist, is thrilled to see six different Flames strike with the man advantage, including Dillon Dube, who scored his first of two goals Tuesday on the power play.
But he believes the penalty kill can bring a team closer together, like it did late in the Game 1 win over the Stars, as the chatter on the bench revolved around killing it off for the captain who has bailed so many others out in the past.
HEARTFELT PRAYERS
Like the rest of the hockey world, Ward was saddened to hear Claude Julien will be sidelined after being hospitalized Wednesday night due to chest pains, and wanted to send his love and support to the family of the Canadiens’ coach, who he knows well. Ward and Julien worked together for many years in the AHL and in Boston, where Ward also endured one of his two cardiac episodes himself.
“I was shocked – I’ve been trying to find out more information, right now I haven’t,” said Ward.
“Not only do I feel for Claude and his family, but the organization and the team. It has ripples when something like this happens. He’s such a great person and he’s a great coach. I’m sure his presence around that team will be missed. But right now, everybody’s thoughts are with him, that he’s healthy and doing well. It’s not a good thing to hear, and when it’s a friend it’s really not a good thing to hear.”
NUMBER CRUNCHING
Read whatever you want into these stats as the Flames prepare for Game 2 tonight (8:30 p.m. MT/10:30 p.m. ET): Flames are 8-5 all-time in series in which they lead 1-0. They are 3-0 all-time when taking a 2-0 series lead. The Flames have lost 10 Game 2’s in a row and are 13-20 all-time in the second game … Only one team is averaging more goals per game in these playoffs than the Flames, who sit at 3.80. The Knights have 4.75 … Only two teams have been stingier than the Flames, who have given up just 1.60 goals per game … The Flames lead all playoff teams with a plus-11 goal differential … Perhaps the most telling stat is that the Flames are 4-0 when leading after two periods (2-0 when leading after one), which speaks to the team’s ability to play shutdown hockey – their downfall last year.
