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Calgary, AB • Canada • 29 Years Old • Male
For the tenth straight time in the regular season the Flames failed to beat the Anaheim Ducks in the Honda Center. Not sure if it is the mystical aroma or the echo you get when you drop a pin in the stadium, but the Flames have constantly had trouble winning in Disneyland.

Tonight the Flames outplayed the Ducks in the 1st and 3rd periods outshooting them 33-13 during those two frames. Despite doing so, the Flames were only able to generate 2 goals and allowed the Ducks to score on their limited chances during the first period. It just happened that the Ducks scored these two goals faster than most people can use the bathroom. Does this sound familiar? For the fourth straight game the Flames allowed two ‘bang-bang’ goals to occur:

Colorado- 2 Goals in 1:06
Chicago- 2 Goals in 36 seconds (Albeit the game was out of reach at that point)
L.A- 2 Goals in 38 seconds
Tonight vs. Anaheim – 2 Goals in 1:08

Is it a lack of focus? A sudden lack of confidence? Do they forget about their assignments because they are worried about getting scored on again? For professional athletes to show such a lack of mental toughness is brutal. This has happened far too often this season to simply consider it a strange occurrence. This problem, along with the “shift after a goal” dilemma needs to be fixed immediately.

Jarome Iginla was again a force, scoring the tying goal with 18 seconds left in the game, while logging a beefy 28 minutes of ice-time. Olli Jokinen played better; that is all. The other part of that top line, Jamie Lundmark, may have paved his way back to Abbotsford tonight for “the bonehead” play of the year when he fired the puck directly into the slot from behind his own net, right onto the tape of Corey Perry, which led directly to the Ducks first goal. This play, coupled with a -2 performance on the night, really nullified any good progress he made in the Kings game.

The Flames head home to face the Hamilton (Phoenix) Coyotes on Wednesday night. The Flames have been horrifyingly average at home and need to exert their dominance inside the Dome. The Coyotes seem like a good place to start doing so.

This has been,

Newman on the Flames

Read More at: http://calgaryontheflames.blogspot.com
Filed Under:   calgary   flames   ducks   iginla   jokinen   perry  
November 24, 2009 9:43 AM ET | Delete
I'm sorry, I usually really like your posts, but it seems that you seem to constantly rag on the other teams fans. Anaheim has had a great fan base for the past 10 years, they had 16 000 strong last night, and they are in 15th place! So please in the future drop the comments like "(the) echo you get when you drop a pin in the stadium"
November 24, 2009 11:10 AM ET | Delete
I don't know if you watched the game Old Time Hockey but unless their arena holds 30000 fans then there wasn't even close to 16000 in attendance. Half the seats were empty. Maybe 16,000 tickets sold... to somebody...
November 24, 2009 1:52 PM ET | Delete
I thought the lundmark pass went to Bobby Ryan but I could be wrong and it doesn't matter because you are right...it was stupid. i couldn't help but think (before that play happened) that if you are calling up a guy to play on the top line...how about Backlund?
November 24, 2009 2:49 PM ET | Delete
November 24, 2009 2:49 PM ET | Delete
November 24, 2009 2:50 PM ET | Delete
November 24, 2009 3:55 PM ET | Delete
I'm sorry chadovich, but I have to prove you wrong. look at pic number 32 on the photo gallery, shows a pretty good view of the whole stadium, looks like about 16000 fans. The reason I got angry was this wasn't the first time his comments on other teams fans have gotten on my nerves, this was just the first time I actually commented on it. http://flames.nhl.com/club/gallerylanding.htm?id=10541
November 24, 2009 4:52 PM ET | Delete
I think Lundmark earned a shot after his great play in last 15 games or so last year - while everyone around him fell to pieces. He was by far our best player at that time...sad as it is to say. But yeah, that was a brutal play. (I beleive it went straight to Ryan, who one-timed the great pass, Kipper saved it, and Perry buried the rebound). Lundmark is certainly not the answer for a top-line replacement. I'm not sure Backlund is either, but worth a shot maybe.
November 24, 2009 5:04 PM ET | Delete
But on a happier note, it was a fun game to watch - mostly because the Flames actually worked hard for most of it. They probably deserved to win, and I'll take a loss with that kind of effort anytime. If they worked that hard most nights, I'd be far more confident about these guys.
November 24, 2009 8:54 PM ET | Delete
I have a friend that was at the game and he said that it was maybe 2/3's full. Just because the announced attendance is 16,000(in this case 15, 343) doesnt mean that there are actually that many people there. Anaheim has had decent attendance in the past but you will see that fall dramatically if they continue to house the basement of the western conference
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