California powerhouses pose big tests for new year
L.A. and Anaheim provide crucial tests to close out first half of regular season
Reminders aren’t necessary this week.
The Calgary Flames know exactly who is coming to town, how they need to play and the importance of their upcoming clashes against two of their biggest Pacific Division rivals.
“They’re going to be a huge two games,” Flames forward Garnet Hathaway said about the looming dates with the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks.
“Right now, we’re just worried about L.A. They’re two big points we don’t want to leave on the table. We’re going to have to play a big, tough, heavy game, and we’re going to have to battle in every zone to be successful.”
The way the team’s schedule is set up had them off on New Year’s Day after a 4-3 overtime win over the Chicago Blackhawks.
They hit the ice Tuesday and spent a large portion of it conditioning and skating.
They’ll skate again Wednesday for a second consecutive practice day before their second meeting with the Kings this season.
Back on Oct. 11 at Staples Center, Jaromir Jagr made his Flames debut while Sean Monahan scored 1:02 into overtime against the host Kings as the Flames won their third straight.
But even then the Flames head coach wasn’t happy with his team’s game, noting their need to tidy up their puck management and the fact they were out-chanced. And don’t even remind Glen Gulutzan about last week’s performance at Anaheim’s Honda Center.
Outside of Matthew Tkachuk’s taffy-pull with resident bad boy Ryan Kesler, there wasn’t much to like.
“If you’re a blend team — and the last team we played (Chicago) they won two cups being a blend team — you need your heavy guys to be heavy and your skilled guys to be quick and score,” Gulutzan said.
“So we’re not going to ask guys to come out of their element. We’re just going to ask guys to play in their element and play to their strengths.
“They have to be at the top of their game if you play top teams in the league.”
With the halfway point approaching on Saturday against the Ducks, it serves as a stark reminder of where they are in the Pacific Division standings — and where their upcoming opponents are situated.
Heading into Tuesday’s action (the Kings were visiting Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers), the L.A. club was sporting a 23-11-5 record, holding the second spot in the NHL’s Pacific Division standings and sitting fourth in the Western Conference.
“They’ve got their 2011 grind on,” Gulutzan said, referring to the 2011-12 season when L.A. won the Stanley Cup as the eighth seed in the Western Conference.
“They’ve been playing some really good hockey. It’s going to be a heavy game.”
That being said, Gulutzan wants his group to focus on playing skilled and fast.
“The one thing with L.A. ... we need to play them quick. That’s how we’ve had success in the past,” Gulutzan said.
“We need to use our speed because if they get that heavy blanketing game on you, it’s tough for anyone to handle. We need to play quick and get quick to areas and have our speed game going.”
The Flames, at 19-16-4, are still trying to iron out kinks, particularly at home where they have a 10-11-0 record.
Saturday’s opponent, if you’ll recall, out-played the Flames in a 2-1 loss which would have been more lopsided in favour of the Ducks if it hadn’t been for Mike Smith’s 39 saves.
“Anaheim played really well at home, especially in that first period,” Hathaway said. “So we have to play like that I think. We have to jump on them physically, but we also have to get the puck to the net.
“That’s going to be a big thing for us.”
Although they beat the Blackhawks to ring in 2018, the consensus was the Flames did not play a consistent game.
They squandered a three-goal lead and nearly let the Blackhawks come back and finish the job.
“We weren’t as good as we could be,” lamented Flames forward Sam Bennett.
“These are two games where we need to step it up. They’re two physical teams. Our starts in our last two games, we haven’t been physical or fast. I think that’s how we’re going to have to start those games.”
They also can expect a heavyhitting bunch of you-know-whats.
But according to Bennett, two can play that game.
“That’s their style,” Bennett said. “They’re big teams, they play physical, and we can play that way, as well. We haven’t been playing physical enough as we could be, but we’re capable of it. So that’s how we need to play.”