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Five takeaways from Calgary’s G1 win over Dallas:
1) Calgary’s team defense was exceptional. I know the Dallas Stars aren’t the most dynamic offensive team anymore – there’s a reason I spent much of the preview talking about low-event hockey – but the Flames made them look completely lifeless from start to finish. Dallas mustered up only 13 scoring chances (three Grade A), and 1.1 Expected Goals, across all game states. Cam Talbot had to make almost no saves of note. If not for the weird ~two minutes where a couple bounces went Dallas’ ways, I can honestly say I don’t think the Stars threatened to score. I mean, their best player didn’t record a single shot on goal and all of the volume came from garbage locations.
2) I thought Rasmus Andersson was an absolute boss, particularly in his own end. He was always in the right position, he was physical, and he gave up absolutely nothing. No, seriously. The young Swedish rearguard logged nearly 20 minutes of 5v5 ice. Dallas generated zero (0) high-danger chances, and 0.19 Expected Goals, in that game. 0.19. To put that into perspective, that’d equate to ~0.57 Expected Goals over a 60 minute span. The historically bad Detroit Red Wings averaged 1.92 xG per 60 throughout the season. Andersson was *that* good defensively against Dallas. Oh, and he also happened to score the game-winning-goal. I continue to believe Andersson is the 2nd best defenseman on the team and, quite honestly, he might have surpassed Mark Giordano in terms of pure defending. He’s at least close to doing so. What a rock.
3) Calgary’s 3rd line continues to get the job done. Although it looks like Milan Lucic is skating in quicksand, he still has the smarts to think the game and make decisions quickly. He’s making that clear almost every night in these playoffs. Sam Bennett is a wrecking ball, hitting everything that moves and taking the puck to the net whenever possible. Then there’s Dillon Dube, shooting the lights out and taking the top off of unsuspecting defenses. This line is really going right now and feasting on opposing depth.
4) Not to rain on the parade, but Calgary’s top line is still not cutting it at 5v5. I feel like I’ve voiced concerns after *every* game and they’re still not making any headway in terms of righting the ship. Last night they combined for two shots and 0.15 Expected Goals at 5v5 while finishing with the worst possession numbers on the team. I don’t care if Dallas is a good defensive team. The same can be said of every opponent the Flames will face. They’re not providing nearly enough considering their ~$18 million in salary.
5) I just want to tip my hat to Matthew Tkachuk, for the millionth time, because the kid is such a gamer. He helped his line control the run of play at 5v5, he drew another penalty (which Calgary converted on), and he dropped the mitts with Corey Perry. Calgary vs Dallas was somewhat uneventful as a whole but, as usual, it felt like Tkachuk was right in the middle of everything that did happen. You can debate whether he is the best player on the team – there’s definitely a case – but I don’t think anybody can deny he is the heartbeat.
Numbers via NaturalStatTrick.com
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