The crowd at the Saddledome absolutely roared when the Toronto Blue Jays advanced to the World Series.
The way the Calgary Flames have been struggling to start this season, it was nice to have something to cheer about.
On a night that the Toronto Blue Jays clawed back in Game 7 of the ALCS, the Flames were unable to protect a third-period lead, falling 2-1 to the visiting Winnipeg Jets.
While this may have been their finest performance of the fall, the Flames have now lost six straight. At 1-6-0, this marks the first time in franchise history that they’ve collected only two points through their first seven contests of a new campaign.
Perhaps it could have been different if rookie forward Sam Honzek didn’t clank the post in the late stages, one of many what-ifs Monday for the home side.
“I thought we looked really good tonight, besides obviously the result,” said first-line centre Nazem Kadri. “You know, we’re not huge fans of moral victories or anything like that. But they go post-and-in, we go post-and-out, and that’s the difference in the game.”
Rasmus Andersson had Monday’s lone marker for the hosts, taking advantage of a screen from Ryan Lomberg as he wired a low shot from the right point in the middle stanza.
Jets centre Jonathan Toews notched the equalizer early in the third, the first goal of his comeback with his hometown team, while Mark Scheifele capitalized on a two-on-one rush with five minutes to play.
Kadri was sitting in the penalty-box when Toews drained a deflection on the power-play. At the end of a shift, he couldn’t catch Scheifele on the backcheck on Winnipeg’s would-be winner.
Here are three takeaways as the Flames digest this latest loss and switch their focus to Wednesday’s visit from the Montreal Canadiens …
Reason for optimism?
OK, let’s start with the good news … These looked more like the Flames of last season. They were full marks for their effort against the Jets and played a stingy brand, especially at even-strength.
The visitors had 20 of their 28 shots in man-advantage scenarios.
“There was some good stuff tonight,” said Flames bench boss Ryan Huska. “I think we gave up six chances at five-on-five to a very good team. It’s just staying with the hard parts of the game, that’s important for us.”
Andersson echoed that, stressing that his slumping squad must “bring the positives with us from this one and somehow build our game up on Wednesday.”
“We battled for a full 60 tonight,” he said. “We didn’t do that the last few games, so bring that effort and get a couple more greasy ones, I guess.”
Thanks to his second-period strike against the Jets, followed by his trademark stare-down, Andersson is only the third Flames player with multiple markers on the season.
He joins Matt Coronato and Blake Coleman in what shouldn’t be such an exclusive club.
“We just have to keep getting pucks to the net,” said Flames netminder Dustin Wolf, who watched from the opposite end as his crew fired 33 shots on Connor Hellebuyck but only slipped one past him. “That’s been the message the last couple days is we have to go low-to-high and pound pucks. That’s exactly how we scored our goal tonight. We have to keep getting traffic in front and putting pucks there. That’s the game of hockey — bounces are bound to go in at some point. You just have to put pucks there and do the work to get rewarded for them.”
Winnipeg Jets’ Mark Scheifele, left, scores on Calgary Flames goalie Dustin Wolf during third period NHL hockey action in Calgary, Alta., Monday, Oct. 20, 2025.
Reason to panic?
Alright, time for the bad news … The Flames, at 1-6-0, are in big trouble. Even with 75 games to go, their playoff ambitions could soon feel like a pipedream if they can’t right the ship.
To reach 96 points, their total in 2024-25, they will need to clip along at a .627 point percentage for the remainder of the campaign.
That’s a big ask.
“It’s frustrating right now, but you have to find a way to get through it,” Wolf said. “You don’t want to put yourself in a hole. It’s not the ideal scenario by any means, but if there’s a group that can dig out of it …
“We have to keep putting pucks to the net, and the goals are bound to come. Defensively, I thought we were solid tonight. We didn’t give them a whole lot. And that’s how we have to play — we have to play low-event hockey and find ways to generate some offence.”
The Flames’ current six-game skid marks their longest string of losses since Oct. 20 through Nov. 1 of 2023. That rough patch included an under-blue-skies bummer in the Heritage Classic.
While this is now the worst start on local record, Huska reminded that frustration won’t do them any favours.
“If you allow yourself to get stuck on that emotion, then it just keeps snowballing,” he said. “You have to focus on the things that you’re doing well and you have to do them harder. That’s the way I look at it is you get more competitive and you get to the net harder, you make sure that you’re doing everything you can possibly do to make sure you’re prepared and ready to play.
“Frustration does no good for anybody. It’s a matter of rallying around your teammates and playing harder the next game and make sure we get the job done. That’s what we have to do.”
Winnipeg Jets’ Alex Iafallo, right, has the puck kicked away by a stickless Calgary Flames goalie Dustin Wolf during second period NHL hockey action in Calgary, Alta., Monday, Oct. 20, 2025.
That’s more like it
Finally, we’ll wrap with the old news … The Flames’ best player, Wolf, looked like exactly that on Monday.
The sophomore goaltender must have been jealous when they showed a replay on the big-screen of George Springer’s three-run homer to hoist the Blue Jays into the lead in Game 7 against the Seattle Mariners.
Man, wouldn’t Wolf love if his team could put three on the scoreboard in one, um, swing?
The 24-year-old certainly did his part against the Jets. He did most of his best work on the penalty-kill. On one shorthanded sequence, he lost his stick as Alex Iafallo bulldogged his way to the net but regrouped for a clutch stop — still without his paddle — on Kyle Connor.
“He was composed in the net,” Huska praised. “I don’t feel like he was as active as he has been the last few games. When he makes certain saves, when he thinks it and he beats a pass or the rebounds aren’t really moving off of him, you know he’s on.
“Earlier today, someone asked me if I was worried about his start and I said, ‘Not at all.’ Everybody goes through stretches where things aren’t going your way, but he is elite. And when he is feeling good about his game, he has the ability to win you some games on his own.”
They’ll need him to do just that.
While Wolf’s save percentage on the season is a still-scary .867, he sure looked like his stalwart self against the Jets.
“I felt good,” Wolf said after this 26-save showing. “There’s been goals throughout the year that I don’t like. But at the same time, I’m trying to do my best. You can’t look back anymore. You have to look forward.
“You have to look forward to tomorrow’s practice, look forward to the game on Wednesday and keep moving forward. Put this one in the rearview and feel good about it, in terms of individual play. But good wasn’t good enough tonight.”