With a little under a month left to go until the final game of the 2024-2025 regular season, the Calgary Flames are in dire straits.
Two points out of a playoff spot, but holding two games in hand, the .500 Shuffle appears to be a dance going out of style in the Western Conference. While Calgary and Vancouver have continued to flirt with averaging about a point per night from their regular season games, the St. Louis Blues have stepped up and are primed to move past both teams with a win tonight over the Canucks.
The St. Louis Blues are the best team in the Western Conference since the Four Nations Face-Off break ended. 9-2-2 with a .769 points percentage.
Calgary has played into overtime 17 times this season. It’s like watching someone try to get dressed for work while standing in the wake of a jet engine.
It’s chaos.
I hadn’t gotten a chance to watch the Blues following the end of the Four Nations break until March 5; a 2-1 shootout win over the LA Kings. The Flames had been playing every other day on their six-game road trip from hell and had most recently beaten the Flyers 6-3 after a bitter trip through Florida and Carolina.
The impression of that Blues team during their win?
Night and day. The Flames don’t have a hope of making the playoffs if they’re being chased by those guys. The confidence, patience, and poise they played while LA had possession had the group looking like legitimate contenders.
A team that can beat the Winnipeg Jets in the first round and the Oilers in the second.
With that said, here are three reasons to take on the Blues if the Flames should fall out of contention.
1.) Iggy Lite
Alright, this space is generally for Calgary Flames related content, but here are a couple reasons to get on the Blues Train if Calgary ends up only going .550 into 17th overall by season’s end.
Number one, Calgary is well represented. Jake Neighbours, a former Calgary Buffalo and hailing from Airdrie, Alberta, has been an absolute menace this season.
Jake Neighbours has been absolutely COOKING lately! 🧑🍳
Jake finished his most recent game, a 4-1 win over the Nashville Predators, with a Gordie Howe hat trick.
Ok, he got handled, but keep in mind that Michael McCarron is six-foot-six, 235 pounds, and eight years older than the 22-year-old Neighbours. The way the six-foot, 201-pound Neighbours rushed to the defence of Pavel Buchnevich is admirable.
The 26th overall pick in 2020 has 13 points in 13 games since the resumption of play despite averaging only 15:46 of ice time per game.
2.) A Comparable Model
Time will tell if the Calgary Flames will truly bottom out. Given their recent trade deadline track record and the fact that they have a 23-year-old wunderkind between the pipes already? Probably not.
The Blues appear ready to make a run and have zero homegrown top-10 draft selections.
The team technically has Brayden Schenn, 33 and selected at #5 in 2009 by the LA Kings, and Ryan Suter, picked #7 by Nashville 22 years ago.
3.) Bad Decisions
One more reason to root for the Blues, of course, if the Flames don’t make it, this Spring?
Another Calgary kid. Former Edmonton Oiler Dylan Holloway.
Holloway and defenceman Philip Broberg departed Edmonton during the offseason via trade following an awkward week where the Blues had signed the two to offer sheets. Broberg ended up being swapped for a 2025 second round pick and Holloway a third.
The move paid off in spades. Holloway has 22 goals and 32 assists for 54 points in 69 games this season. Broberg has six goals and 15 assists 21 points. Both play in the top six and top four respectively.
If you’re a classic Flames fan and enjoy the schadenfreude of seeing Oilers fans in sports-based misery?
You technically have to cheer for the Blues this post-season.
Game Day
Fresh off a 2-1 win over the New York Rangers, the Calgary Flames are in Newark today to face off against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center.
At a Glance
Calgary Flames (31-25-11, 73 pts) vs. New Jersey Devils (37-26-6, 80 pts)
Last Ten: Calgary (3-4-3) New Jersey (5-5-0)
Time: 5:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time.
TV: MSGSN2, SN1
Mentor vs. Apprentice
First, a caveat that being a goaltender as a profession is ridiculous.
Our bodies are simply not designed to drop down into a butterfly position thousands of times a year with full gear weighing you down.
With that said, how refreshing has it been to not have to watch Calgary roll out a starter that is afflicted with the maladies of a 10-year pro netminder?
Whether it was Mike Smith, Jacob Markstrom, or Daniel Vladar; it just sucks to see a guy fighting through it.
Markstrom, now the Devils 1A in front of Jake Allen, is fighting through it. 1-4-0 and .829 in five games since the end of the break. Jacob took the tournament off to recover from a strained knee ligament.
It just drives you nuts to see. Allen is 3-2-0 over the same time. Nico Dawes is 2-0-0. They have the insurance to let Jacob get ready for the post-season.
Tonight, we’ll see Markstrom in a goaltending battle against Dustin Wolf, who is 3-3-2 and fresh as a daisy comparatively since the end of the break.
Calgary Flames Projected Lineup
Courtesy of Derek Wills. @Fan960Wills
Maybe it's something to watch. The two are dressing for this one. Sustaining the injury on Nov. 1 and returning on Dec. 10, it's entirely possible that Bastian seeks vengeance.
Bastian received an instigator penalty on the play.
Puck drop is around 5:10 p.m. MST.
Have to wonder what the future holds for Blackhawks forward Lukas Reichel.
The Nürnberg, Germany product has seen his average TOI drop from 16:22 to 14:07 to 12:26 year over year in Chicago.
Calgary would be an interesting landing spot. The 22 year old has six points in eight… pic.twitter.com/gLN8sIF2Er
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