Pacific Division a three-way dogfight
Flames have been sizzling of late but can’t shake Sharks, Golden Knights
The Calgary Flames have rolled to an 8-1-1 record since their holiday break.
That’s tied for tops in the NHL over a 10-game stretch.
That’s the sort of scorcher that should create a bit of separation in the standings.
Except that two other Pacific Division outfits have essentially been providing a shadow, setting that same torrid pace.
Take a quick peek in the rearview mirror.
The second-place San Jose Sharks? Winners of six straight, they’re 8-1-1 over that same span.
The hot-on-their-heels Vegas Golden Knights? Yeah, you guessed it — 8-1-1.
“I think it’s helped us, honestly,” insisted Flames captain Mark Giordano — the NHL’s first star of the week — after Sunday’s 7-1 thumping of the Arizona Coyotes at the Saddledome. “I think, when you watch them on our off-nights and you watch them win, it gives you that motivation, for sure.
“We’ve worked hard to get where we are. We don’t want to slip back and slip down in the standings, and they’re really pushing us.”
Indeed, they are.
The Flames have strung together five consecutive triumphs and just equalled their franchise mark for the fastest ascent to the 30-win plateau. The 1988-89 edition also prevailed in 30 of their first 47 dates, and that season turned out not-tooshabby. (You know, if you’re into championship parades.)
Despite the recent roll, despite owning the second-best record on the circuit at 30-13-4, this current crew of Flames hasn’t gained even an inch of cushion in their perch atop the Pacific Division playoff race.
With 64 points, they’re still only three clear of the now-settled Erik Karlsson and the squad from San Jose.
The Sharks’ lone regulation setback since the holiday hiatus came on New Year’s Eve at the Saddledome.
The Flames are just four points up on the Golden Knights, who are proving that Stanley Cup final appearance last spring was no fluke. Their most recent regulation loss was at the hands of the Sharks.
“We know if we’re playing our game and we get the points, there’s no way they can catch us if we keep winning,” said Flames winger Garnet Hathaway.
“You just know that you have to be at your best every night because those two teams are continuing to win and get points, it seems like, every night,” said centre Derek Ryan. “So we have to be that way too or we’ll be finding ourselves moving down instead of where we want to be.”
The similarities aren’t limited to just this 10-game log jam.
After the drubbing of the injured-ravaged Desert Dogs, bench boss Bill Peters was asked about the Flames’ superb stats on Saddledome ice.
“There are about five or six teams, maybe more, that have elite home records, and three of them are in the Pacific — San Jose, Vegas and ourselves,” Peters replied. “I think, combined, we’ve lost 12 games, four each. So all you’re doing there is keeping up. You’re not creating separation, you’re keeping up.
“The Pacific gets beats up a little bit sometimes, but I think the Pacific is a real good division, and it’s reflected in those home records.”
The good news for the Flames — and the Sharks and Golden Knights, too — is the powers of the Pacific have left the rest of their divisional rivals in the dust.
This has already turned into a three-horse race.
The Anaheim Ducks are sweating through an 11-game winless skid. Their general manager issued a press release Sunday to assure he wasn’t planning to fire the coach.
The Vancouver Canucks should be trade-deadline sellers, even though rookie hotshot Elias Pettersson has them right in the thick of the wild card derby.
Up in Edmonton, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl really, really need some help from the supporting-casters.
The Flames, of course, are paying attention to their foes, but there’s not the same reliance on the out-of-town scoreboard as there was in recent seasons.
“This year is different,” said alternate captain Sean Monahan. “We’re focused on our group here. We’re focused on the guys in this room. We’re playing for each other, and you can see that. That’s why we’re in the position we are.”
But this job is far from finished. “It’s nice in the locker-room. It’s always more fun to win, but I think what I like the most is that nobody is satisfied,” Hathaway said. “You don’t get an award, you don’t get a ring, you don’t get a Cup for being in first place for the middle of the season, right? There’s nothing for that.
“So I think right now, it’s about building on it. It’s, ‘Hey, cool. Doesn’t matter. Let’s be there in the end.’”
This year is different … We’re playing for each other, and you can see that.