SMITH SHINES IN FLAMES WIN
Skate save keeps Blackhawks at bay
CHICAGO Every guy on the Calgary Flames’ bench, every one of their proud fathers in attendance at United Center, every fan watching in high-def back home, must have been wondering aloud the same thing.
“How in the heck did he stop that?”
Simple.
“Big feet,” said grinning Flames goaltender Mike Smith, the hero in Sunday’s 3-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.
Big feet.
Huge save.
With about five minutes remaining in what was turning into a nail-biter for the out-oftown team on the first stop of their Dad’s Trip, a sprawled-on-his-belly Smith somehow stopped Artem Anisimov’s closerange attempt with his right skate.
Perched in a private box at the opposite end of the arena, Ron Smith was — like the rest of us — stunned by the scorpion-style save.
“I thought the puck was in,” Smith’s father said post-game. “Because I saw that he was a bit out of position and with an open net and the guy shooting, my split-second reaction was ‘They scored.’ But it didn’t go in the net, and I really didn’t know if he stopped it or if it hit the post or what, until one of the dads said, ‘Did you see him stop that with the back of his skate?!?’ I said, ‘I didn’t even realize he stopped it. I thought it was a goal.’
“For sure, that was a desperation save. He would probably tell you that.”
Pure desperation, indeed. With the Calgary Police Service cowboy hat atop his sweaty lid, Mike Smith admitted he was surprised when the puck bonked his boot.
“Especially in a tight game like that where every save matters and it’s a one-goal game. It’s an important time in the game and a gaping net and I was kind of a fish out of water there, just kicking my feet,” Smith said. “Fortunately, it got a piece of me.”
John Monahan’s son, Mikael Lindholm’s son and Tim Ryan’s son each tickled twine for the Flames in the Windy City, but Ron’s boy was the key contributor in Sunday’s victory.
Offensively, the obvious turning point came after Blackhawks forward Chris Kunitz bloodied Travis Hamonic’s beak with an elbow in the second period, earning himself a major penalty and sending the Flames to a fiveminute man-advantage.
Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford snagged Elias Lindholm’s shot from the slot just a halfdozen seconds into the power play, but the Flames seemed to immediately know the truth and a video review showed Crawford’s glove had been beyond the goal-line for what wasn’t a save after all.
Calgary’s second unit also cashed in, with Derek Ryan sizzling a low shot through a screen.
“Dumb play, dumb hit, so it’s nice to be able to capitalize and make them pay — get two on the major,” said Hamonic, who figures his nose is likely broken. “That was the turning point, I guess. We get those two and we were able to hold on.”
Smith made sure of it with a 22-save showing.
He faced breakaways from three of the Blackhawks’ most dangerous marksmen — Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Alex DeBrincat.
Toews squeezed a shot through his five-hole, the others were denied.
Trade acquisition Dylan Strome wasn’t quite all alone, but he had also snuck behind the Flames’ defence when he provided Chicago’s other tally on the power play.
Smith’s early-season struggles were a popular storyline in Calgary, but the 36-year-old has won back-to-back-to-back starts, allowing a grand total of four goals in that hat trick of triumphs.
His dad never doubted a turnaround was coming.
“Something gets a little bit off and it’s just like a golfer — golfers struggle sometimes and they have to get their game back,” Ron said. “He still believed in himself, and that’s half the battle — when you don’t lose your confidence. So I knew he would get it back together.”
For a few seconds Sunday evening, it seemed Smith might treat the road-tripping Fathers of the Flames to some old-fashioned excitement.
During a second-period scrum around the home crease, Crawford was trading shoves with Flames rookie Rasmus Andersson. Crawford seemed keen to find a dance partner and Smith cruised nearly 100 feet to the centre-line, where he was being shooed back toward his usual hangout by a referee as cooler heads prevailed.
What would Ron have been thinking in that moment?
“He’s probably going, ‘Stop there,’” Mike Smith said with a chuckle. “He has seen enough games at this point to realize that (fighting) is part of the game, but he’d rather see me stay in my net.”
It’s a good thing he did. Those big feet really came in handy.
OFF THE GLASS: With just two ticks left on clock, there was Hamonic — his nose likely broken, blood still spattered on his gear — hitting the deck to block DeBrincat’s shot from close range. No surprise. “You know what Hammer is all about — he’s a real salt-of-the-earth, bluecollar guy, plays the right way. He’s fearless,” Peters said. “He’s blocking shots, dinged up, has the chin-guard on and it doesn’t change the way he plays. He’s a real vital guy for us, an important piece.”