Downward spiral continues for Flames
Shutout loss to Ducks another reminder Calgary’s playoff hopes are all but dead
There’s no hope for the hosts. Not these days, anyway.
The Calgary Flames’ face-plant continued with Wednesday’s 4-0 loss to the Anaheim Ducks at the Saddledome, their fourth straight regulation loss and fifth in a sixgame splat.
The Flames can’t concede until they’re mathematically eliminated, but the reality has set in that their post-season hopes — even their post-season prayers — are cooked.
After Wednesday’s loss to the Ducks, they’re now seven points out with seven games remaining on their regular-season slate. It ain’t gonna happen. “We’ve got to still have that belief,” insisted Flames alternate captain Sean Monahan. “We’re not a group of guys here that are going to give up.”
It was less than a year ago, of course, that these Pacific Division foes faced off in the opening round of the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs.
It was a short series, the Quack Pack completing a sweep, but there were still plenty of positives for the Flames, who figured each of those four clashes could have gone either way.
They probably deserved a better fate. That was the company line.
Wednesday’s loss was the latest in a series of shoulda-wouldacouldas for the Flames during this underachieving season.
Far too many of those have come at the Saddledome, where they are among the NHL’s most … uh … hospitable hosts. Dating back to midJanuary, the Flames own a 3-7-4 record at the Saddledome.
On Wednesday, Matt Stajan’s remarkable milestone — the 34-year-old centre was skating in his 1,000th regular-season game, including 555 in Calgary — was about the only reason for the C of Red to cheer.
“I think that’s a game that our team can learn a lot from for the future,” Stajan said after this latest loss. “That team, they took advantage of their opportunities, and they were totally content in sitting back and just taking the two points. They weren’t going after it. They got their few goals and they were sitting back. That’s a team we can learn from in a game like that.
“It’s unfortunate that we’re in this position. I like the fight in our team, but obviously it hasn’t been enough.”
It could have been a different story. With the Flames enjoying all of the early momentum, Dougie Hamilton cranked the crossbar on the man advantage.
Later on the same shift, Hamilton and captain Mark Giordano got their wires crossed in the defensive zone. Ducks speedster Andrew Cogliano swiped the loose puck, beelined toward the crease and finished a deke to his forehand for the short-handed, unassisted tally.
The locals had a 16-6 edge in shots when Ducks winger Ondrej Kase scored on a soft backhander that somehow squeezed through Flames goalie Mike Smith’s pads.
With just over a minute left in the middle stanza, a neutral zone turnover turned into an odd-man rush for the Ducks, with defenceman Hampus Lindholm scoring on a blocker-side blast as the trailer.
When Smith was hooked at the second intermission, he’d delivered just eight saves on 11 shots.
Francois Beauchemin also scored for the Ducks, ripping a low slapper past David Rittich.
At the opposite end, John Gibson pitched a 29-save shutout, the second time the Flames have been blanked in a three-game stretch.
“I don’t know what to tell you — our scoring has dried up,” said Flames head coach Glen Gulutzan. “Not from lack of effort.”
After returning home just long enough to wash their skivvies, the Flames will once again pack their suitcases for a two-game getaway to California. They face the San Jose Sharks in Saturday ’s matinee (2 p.m. Sportsnet West/Sportsnet 960 The Fan), followed by Monday’s meeting with the Los Angeles Kings.