The Calgary Flames have every reason to believe they can fix their leaky penalty-kill.
It wasn’t all that long ago, after all, that it seemed like they were facing daily questions about a power-play that couldn’t find the back of the net. Now, a few weeks later, it seems like they’re scoring on the man-advantage nearly every game.
If they could get the power-play working, why not the penalty-kill?
“Your special teams, you talk a lot about them as the difference between winning or losing and you’re going to go through stretches where (the PK) is leaky and it’s giving things up,” said Flames head coach Ryan Huska. “The key thing is to kind of snuff it out when it’s happening and find a way as a team to dig into the game and get the job done. That’s where the building starts.”
The Flames need to find a way to start preventing goals when they’ve got a man in the penalty box, and they need to do it fast.
They’re currently killing off only 71.1% of their penalties. Only the Detroit Red Wings (67.5%) and the New York Islanders (66.7%) have been worse so far this NHL season, and it’s costing them games.
Huska specifically mentioned the penalty-kill as being one of the big problems in Thursday’s 4-3 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues. Over their last 10 games the Flames are allowing an average of one goal per game when they’re shorthanded.
“I just think we’re letting teams off the hook a little bit, we’re not all connected with our pressure,” said Flames winger Blake Coleman as the team prepared to face the host Dallas Stars on Sunday (6 p.m. MT, Sportsnet West/Sportsnet 960 The Fan). “I think one or two guys are there, maybe the third guy’s not and it lets them off the hook to reset.
“Getting our clears, it’s not a lack of effort but a lack of execution. If you give teams second or third opportunities, in this league you’re going to pay. So it’s nothing too crazy, we know the adjustments we’ve got to make, It’s attention to detail and hard work. There’s no secret sauce other than that.”
The Flames do seem to believe that whatever it is that’s ailing their penalty-kill can be fixed. There are good players in the unit who have succeeded before, so it’s more a matter of getting everyone on the same page than reinventing the wheel.
That’s easier said than done, to be sure, but they believe it’s entirely possible.
“I think we have to be more connected out there and focus on the details when we prepare and then execute those details,” said Flames captain Mikael Backlund. “If one guy pressures, all guys pressure. That’s what it comes down to, do things together and be more connected.
“We had a good stretch from Game 11 to Game 20 and then we fell off. We have to get back at it again. It’s mentality. We’ve got to come out and have more confidence and more killer instinct and get the job done.”
The Flames are one of the NHL’s better defensive teams during five-on-five play, with only two clubs allowing fewer than the 39 goals they’ve given up. Minnesota (33) led the category entering Saturday’s play, followed by Toronto (36).
If they can somehow figure out a way to make the penalty-kill a little more stingy, they’ll have the makings of a very difficult team to beat.
“When a penalty kill is on, they have an idea about where the puck is going next, so they arrive there on time, that’s a big part of it,” Huska said. “For me, a lot of that means they’re working and they’re working well as a unit of four on the ice, or five if you want to include the goaltender in there, I feel with our guys at times we’re a little late and we don’t move as quickly as we need to side-to-side and those are all things that are always within a player’s control.
“That’s why I feel it’s fixable, it’s a challenge to personnel, it’s a challenge to coaches, we have to make it better and it falls on all of us to make sure we’re committed to doing that.”