Seven of eight points, four games in six nights, three franchise records, two overtime nail biters, and a partridge in a pear tree.
The Calgary Flames had one wish for Christmas, which was to hit the break in a playoff spot.
A Rasmus Andersson overtime snipe late Friday night in Anaheim allowed them to do just that, sending the lads home from their California roadie with a bounce in their step and a spot in the top eight.
It took a near-perfect trip to do so, as the Flames took advantage of rebuilding clubs in San Jose (twice) and Anaheim while grabbing a loser point in LA.
Along the way they set two franchise records for rapid-fire goals to open periods, as well as the biggest shot differential in club lore when the Flames outshot the Ducks 23-1 in the second period Friday.
Alas, the young hosts tied the game 2-2 with their second power play goal of the night early in the third period, prompting the Flames to come up with a little magic in an extra frame that hasn’t been very fruitful for them this year.
On a team that entered overtime losers of seven of their previous nine outings this year that went to overtime or shootouts, Andersson’s short side rocket over Lukas Dostal ensured the evening’s dominant squad was duly rewarded.
“I think 5-on-5 we controlled the game,” said Darryl Sutter following the 3-2 win.
“When you out-chance them that much (in the second) you should have more than a one-goal lead.
“Seven out of 8 points, that pretty much does the math.
“Every game was different and tonight the fourth line scored two goals.”
Brett Ritchie and Michael Stone scored for the Flames who hit the road last week with one stated goal in mind.
They reached it by leapfrogging Edmonton into the final wild card berth in the west, just one point behind Colorado, Seattle and Minnesota.
It sets the table for an interesting second half, as Flames fans wonder if the goaltending woes, chemistry issues and inconsistency that have dogged them the first 35 games are a thing of the past.
This trip went a long way towards making everyone in the room and the city feel better about the re-jigged lines that have both the Elias Lindholm, Tyler Toffoli and Dillon Dube line rolling, as well as Nazem Kadri’s trio with Milan Lucic and Jonathan Huberdeau.
They all peppered the net Friday, but were unable to solve the Ducks’ 22 year-old netminder, who faced 45 shots in all.
The Ducks sent 23 at Jacob Markstrom, yet found a way to push it to overtime.
At the tail end of a first half in which the Flames endured seven and five game losing skids, the Flames looked good on this trip, scoring 18 goals in four games to get back into the playoff race.
Sure, they did it largely against weak opponents.
But that shouldn’t be held against a Flames club that had the toughest schedule in the league the first 30 games.
Taking care of the games you’re expected to win is all part of being a playoff team – something most people in the hockey world believe wholeheartedly the Flames are, especially given how much easier their schedule is the rest of the way.
It would go a long way towards helping them continue their ascent up the standings if they figured out a way to be better when battling for the extra point.
On this night Nikita Zadorov was a big part of the overtime win as he gave chase on a loose puck all the way down the ice and into Anaheim’s zone, preventing the Ducks from changing while the Flames’ two other players switched off.
Zadorov immediately went off for a change, allowing Andersson back onto the ice following a brief rest. Andersson took advantage of an exhausted Ducks trio, using his speed to create enough room for him to snap home the winner after logging 27:37 of ice time.
“They had a couple tired guys out there and we managed to take advantage,” smiled Andersson, who also had four shots on goal and four blocked shots.
“I thought we played pretty well.
“A lot of shots towards the net. How many crossbars and posts did we have – just on the power play we had three or four.
“It’s nice to win one in overtime – feels like it’s been a long time.”
The only better news for Flames fans came earlier in the day when it was revealed Flames assistant GM Chris Snow was back home with his family after two weeks in hospital, fighting for his life.
“We got our Christmas miracle,” wrote his wife, Kelsie on Twitter.
“After two weeks in hospital and two times on life support, Chris is home.”
The rest of the Flames are going home too for the holidays – a well-earned break for the bunch who will host Edmonton Dec. 27.
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