Well that certainly wasn’t pretty and I can confidently say that I did not expect the first two games to end with a tally of 9 goals to 1 in favour of the Anaheim Ducks.

And that’s not to say that I felt the Flames were not the clear underdogs, but I suppose my sentiment was toward the fact that I felt Calgary would offer a stronger first two games.

All is certainly not lost and there is still a fair amount of hockey left for this young and rather inexperienced team, but if Hartley and the rest of the coaching staff can’t find solutions to the problem that are the Ducks, this could end up being an ugly butt kicking that this team is in for.

Having covered this team for three straight seasons I can say that I’ve often felt the fan-base to be somewhat divided; though I suppose the same could be said about any team, really. I have noticed, however, that this particular team’s fan-base are either extremely excited as they feel years ahead of where they “should” be, while others feel cautious as they’d like to ensure the team makes all the right decisions moving forward.

Whether you find yourself in group A, group B, or both, I think we can all agree that this year has been nothing short of exciting. And up until maybe this point in time, the Calgary Flames have constantly surprised me and kept me interested in my writing.

It would appear, however, that the Flames may have finally reached a ceiling which they may not be able to break through…a ceiling stamped with a big picture of a Duck. Although this seems rather depressing, in sorts, it should really credit Anaheim more than it should feel as a jab at the Flames.

With two games upcoming at home, I sincerely feel that Calgary will gain some energy and momentum after a big goal and take away (at least) one win. Beyond that, we will sincerely need to see the Flames of the regular season who did not know the definition of “we can’t” in order to make something out of this series which after two games the masses have them written off.
Written off for the second time of the year. The first time didn’t faze them, will this?

I almost wonder whether the realization that the Ducks are a much stronger and deeper team which is magnified come playoffs is giving Hartley too difficult of a time. We are seeing sheltered minutes for guys like Gaudreau who is half the size of Anaheim’s top line. Furthermore, the grind of the playoffs is certainly showing on some of the key players in Calgary as guys like Ferland, Hudler, Monahan, and Hiller appear to be or have been feeling it more than others (Hiller clearly after game one).

For me, this next game tomorrow night is going to be HUGE. This team is going to need all the help of their fans and some puck luck. As I mentioned in previous blogs which essentially broke down how the teams fared head to head, both Anaheim and Calgary have struggled on the road against one another, so two big home wins is certainly not out of question moving forward.

I don’t know about you, but personally I am left without an ability to predict how this series will go. From what I’ve watched so far and what my “logical” senses want to offer, this series should be over pretty quick. But then again having watched the team all year and having been surprised far too many times, this series could damn well go the distance!

What about you!?

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