The C of Red - Calgary Flames (NHL11 BAGM)

[devo22]

Calgary, AB. Following their 4-2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks, the Calgary Flames announced that defenseman Thomas Hickey was sent to the team's AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Heat. The team also announced that defenseman Alec Martinez and forward Luca Caputi were recalled from the Heat.

"Thomas has played very well for our team", Flames GM Robert Miller said in a press release. "He really has exceeded expectations so far, we are very pleased with his development. He made the team out of camp, and he was there to challenge T.J. Brodie for a spot in the regular six. Both have played very well, and the injury to Brent Sopel gave us the opportunity to give a lot of ice time to both of them. With Brent Sopel being back in the lineup, we feel it is best for Thomas to play quality minutes in Abbotsford at the moment.

"We are excited to welcome Alec to our NHL team. He has been a consistent player in Abbotsford, and we feel it is time to give him the opportunity to play in the NHL. We also welcome back Luca, we feel he has deserved another chance to play with the big club."

Hickey has appeared in 20 games with the Flames this season, posting one goal and three assists for four points. He has amassed 22 penalty minutes, and his +9 rating is among Calgary's best. Martinez has dominated in the AHL this season, registering two goals and 15 assists for 17 points in just 23 games. Caputi has recorded eight goals and four assists in 20 AHL games.

[devo22]

Game 26. Flames @ Canucks, 0-3
The Flames had absolutely no chance against Vancouver this time, as the Canucks used a strong first line and solid goaltending by Roberto Luongo to blank the Flames. Daniel Sedin scored twice and Alex Burrows had the other goal for Vancouver, and Luongo finished with 24 saves. Henrik Karlsson lost his fourth start of the season.

Game 27. Flames @ Ducks, 2-4
The Flames were dealt another loss, but they welcomed Alex Tanguay and Brent Sopel back to the lineup. Corey Perry, Josh Brittain, Alex Frolov and David Laliberte scored for Anaheim, Thomas Hickey and Lance Bouma replied for Calgary. Miikka Kiprusoff took the loss in net, finishing with 21 saves.

Game 28. Flames @ Kings, 3-2
The Flames returned to winning ways against one of their favourite opponents this season, beating the Kings for the third time in as many games, although the Flames conceded goals for the first time after shutting out Los Angeles twice. Rene Bourque had two goals and Alex Tanguay scored as well for Calgary. Anze Kopitar and former Flame David Moss scored for the Kings.

Game 29. Avalanche @ Flames, 4-2
A 4-2 loss to Colorado meant the third loss in four games four Calgary. Mark Giordano and Ryan Howse had goals, but the Avs received markers from Tomas Fleischmann, Justin Keller, Jakub Klepis and Peter Mueller to win an important divisional games. Miikka Kiprusoff struggled in net, recording 26 saves.

Game 30. Wild @ Flames, 3-4 OT
After being held scoreless for four games, Jarome Iginla returned to his old self with an overtime game-winner against the visiting Wild. Alex Tanguay, Rene Bourque and Anton Babchuk also scored for Calgary, while Guillaume Latendresse, Eric Nystrom and Justin Falk had goals for Minnesota.

[devo22]

SCORING SUMMARY

1st period
12:55 EV Jay Bouwmeester 2 (Olli Jokinen 10)
18:24 EV Ryan Howse 7 (Olli Jokinen 11)

2nd period
4:04 EV Mark Giordano 7 (Brayden Schenn 6)
14:55 EV Alex Tanguay 7 (Mark Giordano 11)

3rd period
none

GOALTENDER STATS

EDM Nikolaj Khabibulin L 4-14
EDM Jeff Deslauriers 0-17
CGY Henrik Karlsson W 0-20 SO

THREE STARS

1st Mark Giordano: 1 goal, 1 assist, +2, 26:49 min
2nd Henrik Karlsson: W 0-20 SO
3rd Olli Jokinen: 2 assists, +2, 18:28 min

You would expect players to be happy and all smiling after a dominant 4-0 win over your bitter arch-enemies, but it was not the case when reporters streamed into the Flames' dressing-room to interview the players after Calgary's win over the visiting Edmonton Oilers. The Flames were too angry about losing four players to injury in the game, as Anton Babchuk, Jay Bouwmeester, Rene Bourque and Luca Caputi all left hurt.

"If they came here to hurt us, I would say they did a hell of a job", Flames forward Tim Jackman, who recorded ten penalty minutes for two fight majors in the game, said. "The third period was brutal. They were outplayed in the first two periods, so they came out in the third purely to hurt us."

Anton Babchuk was the first victim after just two minutes in the third period when he was checked into the boards by Zack Stortini. Stortini was charged with a game-misconduct on the play, while Babchuk headed back to the dressing room with an apparent ankle injury. It took a few minutes before the game was on again, as Jarome Iginla was fighting Ladislav Smid and Tom Kostopoulos took on Jean-Francois Jacques after Stortini's hit.

Jay Bouwmeester was then injured by Kurtis Foster in an open-ice collision. Another fight followed, in which Luca Caputi probably suffered a broken nose against Theo Peckham. Rene Bourque was injured late in the game when he collided with Jason Strudwick in an apparent knee-on-knee hit.

"That was intentional kneeing, no doubt about that", Jackman, who fought against Strudwick after the incident, said.

"It's frustrating", Flames defenseman Cory Sarich said. "We were finally getting healthy again, except Glennie [Curtis Glencross] of course. But we just got Alex [Tanguay] and Brent [Sopel] back, so we felt pretty good. Then you play the Oilers once and have a bunch of guys out again."

The extend of the injuries are not clear yet, but coach Jim Playfair expects his players to miss some time.

"We have to wait and hope for the best", Playfair said. "But I have already talked to Craig [Conroy, coach of the Flames AHL' affiliate] and told him that we'll probably need a few guys from down there."

When asked about his feelings following the third period, Playfair was careful to choose his words.

"We lost a few quality players, obviously I am not thrilled about that", Playfair said. "We we're battling hard to get a well-deserved shutout for Henrik [Karlsson], who has had a rough season so far. We achieved that, but it came at a big cost, to say the least."

"Well, that's hockey", Oilers coach Tom Renney said. "Those have been unfortunate injuries. I am sure none of my players wanted to hurt anybody. The answer of our opponents was to fight our guys, which was disgusting if you ask me."

In the shadow of the events, the game itself was a one-sided affair. The Flames got a 2-0 lead in the first period after Jay Bouwmeester and Ryan Howse scored for the hosts. Olli Jokinen was the mastermind behind both goals.

First, a well-placed shot from the Finnish center forced Oilers goaltender Nikolaj Khabibulin to give up an easy rebound for Bouwmeester, who joined the rush and banged it in at 12:55 into the game. The goal stood as the game-winner, but Bouwmeester will not be too happy about it if the injury sustained will force him to miss action. The steady defenseman is the current NHL iron man, as he has appeared in 539 straight games.

Ryan Howse then doubled the lead after 18:24 when he scored on a one-timer after a great pass by Jokinen. It was Howse's seventh of the season, as the rookie is slowly beginning to show his goal-scoring abilities.

Defenseman Mark Giordano then put the game to bed in the second period. He first scored with a hard shot from the blue-line just 4:04 into the period. Brayden Schenn had set him up, and Khabibulin never saw the shot as Rene Bourque screened him perfectly. Giordano then sent Alex Tanguay on a break-away, and the veteran forward ended Khabibulin's night with a neat wrist shot towards the end of the period. Khabibulin was pulled after giving up four goals on just 14 shots. Jeff Deslauriers then was perfect with 17 saves.

Henrik Karlsson did not only win his first game of the season, but also recorded his first ever NHL shutout. Karlsson was never really tested by the Oilers, and 20 saves were enough for the "Calgary Tower" to secure the feat.

The two teams will meet in Calgary again in two days, and it should be an emotionally charged game to say the least. The Flames will update the status of their injured players tomorrow.

[devo22]

INJURIES:

- LW Curtis Glencross has missed 30 straight games with a broken leg. Glencross has started skating and is expected to make a comeback in the near future. His status was upgraded to "day-to-day".

- LW Rene Bourque missed two games with a knee problem after the infamous Oilers game.

- D Anton Babchuk missed a total of 13 games with an ankle injury after the infamous Oilers game.

- D Jay Bouwmeester missed seven games with an abdominal strain after the infamous Oilers game. His iron man streak of consecutive NHL games played ended at 539 because of the injury.

- LW Luca Caputi suffered a broken nose in the infamous Oilers game and has not been in the lineup since as he was sent down to Abbotsford for conditioning.

PLAYER MOVEMENT:

- RW Ales Kotalik was recently scratched and he is expected to stay in the press box for the next few games. Kotalik started well this season, but he has gone 24 games without a goal and has just recorded two assists during the stretch. Surging young forwards such as Lance Bouma and Greg Nemisz as well as several forwards coming back from injuries have pushed Kotalik down the depth chart.

- D Alec Martinez played his first eight games of the season when Babchuk and Bouwmeester were out. Martinez recorded one goal and one assist during the stretch before he was returned to Abbotsford.

- D Tim Erixon played his first NHL games when Babchuk and Bouwmeester were injured. Erixon scored his first goal in an away win at Columbus and added four assists in his first 13 games. Erixon looked solid during the whole NHL stint and experts agree that Erixon is set for a full-time NHL job next season. He is now back with Abbotsford.

- D Thomas Hickey's stay with Abbotsford was a short one, as he was recalled as well when Babchuk and Bouwmeester were sidelined. In ten additional games, he recorded a goal and an assist, meaning he now has two goals and four assists in 30 games. He is now back with Abbotsford.

- D Jonathan Sigalet was rewarded for his steady play in Abbotsford with a recent call-up to the NHL, but he is yet to play a game.

[Dynasty]

Nice season so far man, keep it rollin

[thedudedominick]

Have to love your best player Iginla in leading the way for scoring through 50.

Keep up the playoff pace.