The Calgary Flames played their fifth game of the season against the Utah Mammoth last night, in the second half of a back-to-back. They finished with a final score of 3-1, including an empty net goal against, with their only goal scored by Rasmus Andersson on the power play. Here are three takeaways from last night’s game, and how they can affect the Flames going forward.
Devin Cooley Played Admirably
While Dustin Wolf was set to be the Flames’ starter this season since he earned Calder Trophy votes last season, the question of who was going to take the Calgary Flames’ backup job was much more up in the air. After an abysmal preseason by both candidates (Devin Cooley and Ivan Prosvetov), there wasn’t that much optimism for the inevitable games of the season where Wolf wasn’t playing.
Devin Cooley, Calgary Flames (Sergei Belski-Imagn Images)
However, while the result was obviously not ideal, Cooley absolutely played his part and had one of the best games of his young career. He allowed two goals on 31 shots, one of which was a breakaway and the other was a difficult shot from in close. He gave the team every opportunity to win, especially in a game where they got outshot by a factor of three to two.
MacKenzie Weegar Has a Penalty Minute Issue
One of the Flames’ biggest issues in this game was penalties – the game was a parade to the penalty box on both sides, with the Flames taking 21 penalty minutes (PIMs) to the Mammoth’s 17 – but Calgary seemed to take one every single time they started gaining momentum, and ended up on the penalty kill seven times. Thanks to their quality penalty kill and Cooley’s performance, they didn’t allow a power-play goal, but spending that much time on the man disadvantage is not a good sign. Rasmus Andersson amassed 7:57 of ice-time shorthanded, and next in line was his defensive partner Kevin Bahl with 7:12.
Related: 3 Takeaways From Flames’ 4-2 Loss to the Golden Knights
It’s especially disheartening looking at the way the team is trending. Overall, they’re fifth out of 32 in penalty minutes with 47 through five games (meaning about five minor penalties a game), and MacKenzie Weegar leads the way with 20 PIMs himself, second in the entire NHL to the Chicago Blackhawks’ Louis Crevier. Weegar is an important player to the Flames’ penalty kill, and losing him because he’s in the box does them no favours at all.
Andersson’s Trade Value Increases
Outside of Cooley, the Flames’ skaters were generally found pretty lacking last night. The one exception was Andersson, who scored the Flames’ only goal on the power play and led the team in ice-time, especially shorthanded. Andersson might not always be the Flames’ best player, but when he’s “on” he’s a really dynamic defender who can move the puck up the ice and control it in the offensive zone, as well as take away shooting and passing lanes and return possession to his team in the defensive zone. Utah is a strong offensive-zone possession team that uses their speed to their advantage a lot, but Andersson managed to keep up with them for most of the game, even if his teammates didn’t.
If he continues to perform, it could have big implications for the Flames’ future, since Andersson has been in trade conversations for a while and could be headed out of Calgary soon, before his contract expires at the end of the 2025-26 season.
What’s Next for the Flames?
The Flames played a very poor game, and probably deserved to lose by a larger margin than they did. After this game, their record is now 1-4-0, with their only win coming in a shootout. Their next game is on Saturday against the Vegas Golden Knights, who they lost to on Tuesday by a score of 4-2.
