The Calgary Flames overcame tough odds and beat a veteran loaded Seattle Kraken squad 4-1 last night in preseason game number five.

Prior to the game, Head Coach Darryl Sutter pointed out this game as the “best chance” to for a few outsiders to impress as opposed to the “last chance”. That said, he also pointed out some major cuts were happening in the next few days.

Today some of those cuts were announced. Jakob Pelletier, Mathias Emilio Pettersen, Martin Pospisil, Ryan Francis, Adam Ruzicka, and Dustin Wolf were sent to Stockton and will not have to clear waivers.

Nick DeSimone, Kevin Gravel, Matthew Phillips, and Andy Welinski were put on waivers with the purpose of assigning them to Stockton.

Of that group, I think it’s disappointing that Ruzicka didn’t show more this camp. He was very quiet in preseason. For all the praise Mathias Emilio Pettersen gets down in Stockton, he didn’t show very well in camp. Of the waiver eligible players, there is a chance a team makes a spot for Matt Phillips, but it seems unlikely.

One guy I thought would have a better chance of sticking was Andy Welinski, who brought a very patient and crisp passing game in the Flames 4-0 loss to the Oilers. He played in the Ducks organization while Sutter was an advisor there and was signed to a one-year contract this offseason.


On to last night’s game.

It is always nice when the underdog wins. The Flames mustered only 13 shots and looked completely outclassed. They buried their chances though and managed to stave off a momentum change after a goal from Vince Dunn. Dan Vladar played exceptionally well and deserves a lot of credit for the result.

Here are a few thoughts on the game.

Slow start
The Kraken ran over the Flames to start this game. On top of that, Gawdin and Francis took unnecessary penalties in the first. Despite this, the Flames got a power play late in the first and Froese put one away with a goal off a tip from Jusso Valimaki. Valimaki made a nice move to get a loose puck corralled so quickly to get the shot off.

Gawdin had a big game
Gawdin scored a shorthanded goal in the second with a clean wrist shot from the top of the circle. Driedger probably wants that one back.

Duehr die
Duehr impressed again with a few shot attempts — one getting through, and kept his feet moving. The stats aren’t there, but Duehr looked dangerous on a couple plays.


I have to apologize. I wish there was more to analyze, but it took until the second to find a grainy feed of this game on the internet. Credit to r/nhl_games on reddit for finding the Kong TV broadcast in Kent. There aren’t any stats available beyond offensive production, shots, and +/-. Here’s hoping there aren’t too many more games in Kent, Washington.

The Flames are in Edmonton tomorrow for preseason game number six. With the roster trimmed down to 30 individuals, expect a more concerted defensive effort. Game starts at 7pm and will likely be available via calgaryflames.com. Currently only the fan960 is listed, but this preseason has been a gong show in terms of providing information on preseason broadcasts.



Have a great Sunday,



Trevor Neufeld

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