STROMGREN STEPPING UP FOR WRANGLERS
Forward prospect's performance during series clincher a promising sign
With a dash of deception and then a blast of speed, Calgary Flames forward prospect William Stromgren darted between a pair of defenders and completed this rush by pulling the puck to his forehand and firing a quick shot.
It was a highlight-reel goal, to be sure.
And it was more than just that. It also turned out to be a series-clinching snipe as the Wranglers prevailed in a best-ofthree and advanced to the next round of the AHL'S Calder Cup playoffs.
“It's the most important time of the year,” Stromgren, a second-round pick in 2021, told Postmedia prior to the Wranglers' ouster of the Tucson Roadrunners.
“So if you can step up and be a really good player in the playoffs and help the team, I would say that's probably bigger than just regular-season points.”
Very true.
And in that case, Stromgren's first-star performance in Friday's series clincher in Tucson is a great sign.
The 20-year-old winger also assisted on Calgary's first tally of the evening, starting a tic-tac-toe sequence that was highlighted by Adam Klapka's nifty no-look dish to Sam Morton for a man-advantage marker.
Stromgren then came up clutch near the midway mark of the third, scoring a crucial insurance goal with that impressive solo effort. One of the blueliners he burned on that sequence has 200-and-some nights of NHL experience.
The Roadrunners scratched one back in the late stages, so Stromgren's strike counted as the game-winner as the seventh-seeded Wranglers earned a 4-3 victory, a 2-0 series sweep and advanced to face the division-leading Coachella Valley Firebirds in a best-of-five showdown.
The Flames' farm-clubbers will be on home ice for Games 1-2 at the Saddledome — mark your calendar for Friday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 4 p.m. — before the action shifts south for Games
3-5. The Firebirds, the top affiliate, for the Seattle Kraken, won six of eight against the Wranglers during the regular season.
“As we said in the room, coming in here as an underdog and fighting off this second-place team, it's just big for the group,” Stromgren told Wranglers TV after Friday's triumph in Tucson. “Everybody knows we have a tight group and everybody wants to win here. It just feels so good for the group to go through to the next (round).”
While Stromgren posted a solid stat line in his rookie campaign, emerging as a regular contributor in the second half and finishing with 27 points in 68 outings, any chatter about this skilled Swede is often served with a side of woulda-coulda-shoulda. That has nothing to do with the kid.
When the Flames called Stromgren's name at No. 45 in the 2021 NHL Draft, some fans were hoping they'd instead take a shot at Logan Stankoven, an undersized winger who had been filling the net as one of Connor Zary's junior teammates in Kamloops. Stankoven was ultimately selected at No. 47 by the Dallas Stars, and he's already making a dent in the Big D.
Stromgren, listed at 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds, can't control his draft position and the comparisons that come as a result. To his credit, he continues to show that he, too, is worth getting excited about, that he could be a future factor for the Flames.
It's worth nothing that Stromgren, who turns 21 in
June, is the youngest dude in the Wranglers' playoff lineup.
It's also worth remembering that he spent last winter in the Swedish Hockey League. There was bound to be an adjustment to the smaller ice surface.
There is no doubt that he has soft hands and intriguing offensive upside. He scored a shootout goal last month in Colorado that was simply filthy.
“I gotta say, he kind of surprises me. He's really, really good,” praised Wranglers buzz saw Jakob Pelletier, who had Stromgren as his linemate in the late stages of the regular season. “He's fast. He's really fast. He's a thinker. He wants to make plays. He wants to play in the offensive zone. He's not afraid to use his body, as well.”
“He's one of those kids that you can never count him out,” echoed head coach Trent Cull during Friday's post-game interview with Wranglers TV. “Because he has really good ability and he can come up in those big situations.”
Like he did to eliminate the Roadrunners.
Like he'll aim to do against the Firebirds, who enjoyed a firstround bye.
“I would say, from the beginning until Christmas, it was tougher than I expected, for sure,” Stromgren said, recapping his progress as an AHL rookie.
“But New Year and on, I think I've been playing my game again and playing my game better. It gives me confidence. I think the second half of the season has been so much better than my first. It's kind of a different hockey here in Canada, and you just have to get used to that. I think the beginning was tough for me, but I've smoothed it out in the second half.
“It's just learning this game here and trying to get as good as possible in the shortest amount of time, and I think it's just gone better and better.”