Advertisement

Calgary Flames start road heavy finish in desperate need of wins

Josh Cooper
Calgary Flames start road heavy finish in desperate need of wins

In the words of Kenny Loggins “This is it” for the Calgary Flames on their upcoming roadtrip.

There are just eight games left for the advanced stat non-darlings and six come away from the friendly Scotiabank Saddledome confines.

And there is some pressure on the guys with the flaming Cs on their unis to get a ‘W’ in regulation against the Minnesota Wild and Iron Man goaltender Devan Dubnyk on Friday.

The Los Angeles Kings swept a tri-state area three game stretch as part of what was considered to be their five-game roadtrip of death. At very least this means the defending Stanley Cup champs will finish this trip with an over .500 record – which is more than we expected for Los Angeles, who has had a ‘meh’ road record all year.

Currently, the Flames have 87 points to the Kings’ 88 in 74 games played, but Calgary has one more regulation and overtime win, which could potentially help in the end heading toward the final Pacific Division playoff spot.

According to Sports Club Stats, with a regulation loss to Minnesota, Calgary’s playoff chances will drop 12.6 percent off 58.9 percent.

Now it’s Calgary’s turn to be road warriors.

Per the Calgary Herald:

The Calgary Flames have eight games remaining, six in enemy territory. They now embark on a ticklish tour, which opens Friday against the vindaloo-hot Minnesota Wild. The itinerary also includes stops in Nashville, Dallas, St. Louis, Edmonton. When the Flames get back home — April 7 versus Arizona — will their playoff picture be any more clear?

Yes and no. The game April 9 against the Kings looms large for the Flames. And the Flames have that potential mega contest at home. But there’s still a lot of time between now and then.

And for Calgary to make it an important contest, the Flames need to keep up their winning ways, in spite of statistical skeptics.

Per the NHL’s enhanced stats site, Calgary as a team is a minus-713 in regards to shot attempts differential. This ranks them 28th in the NHL. Granted, the Montreal Canadiens rank 23rd and the Rangers 19th, so this isn’t an end-all, be-all. But it’s a tool to help show us a teams overall puck possession dominance.

The Kings rank first at plus-620. Out of the teams in the top-10 in this category only Carolina is currently not in the playoffs. Out of the NHL’s bottom 10 in this puck possession notion, only the Canadiens own a playoff spot.

Regardless of the fancy stats, it’s all about wins, and the Flames have somehow figured out how to ‘get the two points’ in spite of a season-ending injury to Mark Giordano and basically being called out for being an advanced stat outlier all year. It’s almost like it has become a rallying cry for them. To quote Phil Collins, another 80s softish rock icon, they're winning "against all odds."

When a guy like Deryk Engelland, whose summer three-year contract was rightfully panned, scores two goals to give Calgary a point against Dallas in a come-from-behind shootout loss, there has to be some voodoo going on here.

Said coach Bob Hartley per the Calgary Sun:

“We always say that two points in October is the same value as two points at this time of the year, which is true and this is why we're in our situation. But now, to get two points, especially in the Western Conference, you need to invest a little bit more. Invest a little bit more on the physical side, on the mental side. But that's part of our business.”

But how long can it continue. And is it enough to keep Los Angeles away? Every time they get doubted, they win. So at least expect this column to lead to some sort of victory over Minnesota on Friday.

- - - - - - -

Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

MORE FROM YAHOO HOCKEY