Flames’ collective buy-in keeping playoff hopes alive ahead of matchup with Oilers
The Flames have been “battling for one another” to keep their playoff hopes alive. They’ll look to do more of the same in a Battle of Alberta matchup with the Oilers on Saturday.
CALGARY – Watching his team battle on TV from the comfort of his couch, injured captain Mikael Backlund pinpointed a key moment that helped spur on his team’s inspired play of late.
With his Flames clinging to a late 2-1 lead at Madison Square Garden 10 days ago, Joel Hanley dove head-first to block a Braden Schneider blast that typified the selfless dedication being made for the cause.
“The resilience has been a big factor for us, just sticking with it and battling for one another,” said Backlund, who returned to action Thursday.
“It started in New York with Nacho (Hanley) blocking a shot with his face first. It really set the tone for that trip, guys stepping up in different ways and playing really well.”
The block, which luckily hit his shoulder, helped preserve the first of four-straight Flames wins, earning the 33-year-old journeyman endless kudos from a cast and crew that has collectively bought in to keep the team’s unlikely playoff drive alive.
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It’s a hard way to win, but for the Flames, it’s the only way.
“Whatever you have to do to win,” said Ryan Huska of his team’s mantra.
“That’s how I look at it. We’ve done a lot of talking about how anybody can be a difference-maker on any given night, and if you’re not prepared, or ready for it, your opportunity to be that guy may pass you by. I feel like guys have grabbed hold of that. Whether we’re up or we are down we have to find a way to stay in games.”
Four straight comeback wins, including the club’s first New York-area sweep, were a testament to their fortitude, as was their 48-shot performance in a gutting 5-2 loss to Dallas Thursday in which they deserved a better fate.
The club will look to build on their momentum in Edmonton Saturday when they’ll face a depleted Oilers squad. And they’ll do so with a work ethic and confidence that, on any given night, a different set of heroes can emerge.
That’s been the Flames’ way all season.
Nazem Kadri’s seven goals in the last five games have certainly stood out, as have the gaudy stats of Jonathan Huberdeau and Matt Coronato.
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The goaltending also continues to keep the dream alive.
But it’s the collective that has allowed this group to stay just six back of St. Louis with three games in hand.
Hanley’s transformation from healthy scratch the first two months to top four mainstay symbolizes how far he, and the team, has come.
“I think as a team we always believed we could do great things, but obviously we still had to go out and prove it,” said Hanley, who admits he “wasn’t thinking” when he put his head in harm’s way at MSG.
“Myself, the same kind of thing, I always believed that I could do it, I just had to go prove it.”
The growing list of Oilers’ injuries and losses, combined with the Flames’ momentum, belief and desperation, sets the stage for what should be another fascinating chapter in the provincial battle.
You’d probably have to go back to the early 90s to find a Flames team that could go into Edmonton on a Saturday night as prohibitive favourites.
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The Oilers have little to play for, standings-wise, and will almost certainly be without Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Mattias Ekholm, Stuart Skinner, Trent Frederic and Evander Kane.
The Flames will be dealing with the emotion of losing Connor Zary to a second knee injury this year, bracing for results of Friday afternoon imaging on a left knee that buckled sickeningly under the weight of a sliding Mikko Rantanen.
Sportsnet learned Friday the leg is not broken, and there is optimism the injury isn’t as bad as initially thought.
Both teams have stolen a win in the other team’s building this season, but all bets are off when these two meet.
“I do feel like this is like our playoffs,” said Huska.
“We’re seeing Playoff Naz and Playoff Huby, and there are different players we’re seeing right now because they understand the situation that we’re in.”
Blake Coleman dubbed his club’s lot in life, “urgent, not desperate.”
How things unfold in Edmonton may have something to say about that.
