Life is a lot easier on my end when the Calgary Flames have a glaring weakness or ongoing issue with the roster.
It’s not often that a player on the opposing team records a hat trick and I’m not preparing an article about the Flames defence needing to regroup and adjust.
But here we are.
9-5 Calgary Flames over the Edmonton Oilers.
It feels only right that after breathing life into the Edmonton organization by means of a 5-3 loss on January 22 (one that ended a six game losing streak) that the Calgary Flames should be the team to gut punch said breath back out of the Oilers later in the season.
Fourteen goals, two different instances of three straight goals, and a mid game goalie swap.
So, instead of going blow-by-blow through all 14 goals, let’s look at questions these two teams face moving forward.
First and foremost,
What is Edmonton Oilers general manager Ken Holland going to do about the goaltending situation?
Mikko Koskinen was chased from his net last night after allowing five goals on 12 shots. Good for a .583 save percentage. While many of those goals were borderline unsavable, a .583 save percentage is unacceptable.
Mike Smith didn’t fare much better. Four goals against in 26 shots. He played way too far back into his net and various Flames players picked corners on him. A highlight for Calgary fans being when Mike skated over to Mikeal Backlund and got in his face. Minutes later, Backlund sniped one just out of reach of his glove. Had Smith been at the top of his crease, then that target wouldn’t be available.
So, what do the Oilers do?
The obvious answer is call up Stuart Skinner from Bakersfield. The 6’4” 23 year old is 6-6-0 over 12 starts with one extra appearance to make it 13 games played. The rookie has a .913 save percentage and a 2.62GAA over that span.
Compare that to Smith:
7-9-2 .896% 3.41GAA
Or Koskinen:
23-10-3 .899% 3.17GAA
And fans start to get pretty fired up about the subject. Which makes you wonder:
Do the Oilers have their eye on someone at the draft?
Ken Holland has refused to part with his first round pick. The asking price for a Gorgiev out of New York seems to involve at least a first. He’s willing to give second round picks and third round picks for the likes of Duncan Keith and Brett Kulak, but he won’t invest draft capital to help his team out of an utter mess in the crease.
Six days ago, Holland went on record saying
“When both goalies are healthy, I’m comfortable with our goaltending.”
Do Oilers fans feel the same?
To be fair, goaltending is only part of the issue.
The question that naturally follows is:
Will the Oilers find a way to play with structure and accountability in the near future?
You may have noticed that all of the nine Flames goals were at even strength. Kane, McDavid, Draisatl, and Nurse were all -4 and Cody Ceci was -5 on the night. When your best unit gets lit up like that, you have to have some serious talks about commitment to team defence.
Back checking, protecting the front of the net, managing the defensive cycle and breaking the other team’s offensive cycle should all be addressed in practice today by the coaching staff.
The Flames also have a bit of an issue in goal. Albeit much less worrisome.
When will Jacob Markstrom return to elite form?
The Flames starter made some absolutely glorious saves last night. You don’t always need to play above .900 to secure a win for your team, but the lumbering 6’6” Swede has quietly played below average compared to the rest of his campaign. His save percentage on the season is .925. Take a look at his last three games courtesy of nhl.com.
Last night was more a product of the Oilers lacking shots until Gord Dwyer, the man responsible for a 34-2 penalty minute differential against the Canucks a month ago, decided to manage the game. Kudos to the Oilers powerplay going 3/5.
That raises the next question:
How much better will Ryan Carpenter get as he settles in?
The 31 year old former Blackhawk looked tentative last night. He finished the game a -1 in 8:55 of ice time. He looked uncertain whether to commit to throwing the body in any given situation, which will be what his primary role will be on the Flames. He finished the night with zero hits recorded, which is false. He threw two hits.
His other specialty will be winning faceoffs. So far so good in that department — 71% in the dot last night or 5 of 7. 1 for 1 against Draisatl, 3 for 4 against Shore, 0 for 1 against Kane, and 1 for 1 against Nugent-Hopkins.
It’s already been mentioned in previous posts, but it’s certainly worth pointing out again. Carpenter has one practice with the team under his belt. He played the night before he was traded to Calgary. He brought his wife and three kids over to Calgary with him.
Chances are we see a more confident Ryan Carpenter in a couple days.
Just a few questions to ponder given that the Flames don’t play until the 29th against the Colorado Avalanche. If you’re a Flames fan, why question things too much? Bask in the warm eminence of victory. It’s not often your team puts up nine even strength goals on their arch-rival.
As for the Oilers fans reading; I admire your bold masochism. Arizona Coyotes tomorrow. Hopefully a better result than a 9-5 loss.
@Trevor_Neufeld 
Calgary Flames Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»