The Los Angeles Kings threw everything they had at the Calgary Flames.
For the opening 20 minutes of Saturday night’s Pacific Division matchup at the Saddledome, it was all Kings (24-11-5).
And in Flames (20-14-7) head coach Ryan Huska’s eyes, his team was able to survive and eventually turn the tides to earn a 2-1 win because of one man.
“It wasn’t the group, it was (Dustin) Wolf,” Huska said. “They were really fast in the first period, so we were chasing the game all over the ice.
“We were able to hang around because our goaltender made some saves and once we got through the first period our game got a little bit better and we got a really big power-play goal and our penalty-kill did a really good job for us tonight.”
It doesn’t feel reductive to say that Wolf really was the only reason the Flames were still in the game after the opening 20 minutes.
The Kings outshot the Flames 17-4 in the opening frame, at one point firing nine shots at Wolf during one two-minute penalty.
“Certainly wasn’t expected, but you know what? That’s hockey for you, sometimes you’re on the receiving end of 17 and sometimes you’re on the receiving end of four,” Wolf said post-game. “Certainly got me into the game pretty quick and just glad we got out of that period 1-0.”
Somehow, though, only Jacob Moverare managed to sneak one past the Flames’ star rookie, and that meant the Flames were within striking distance once the Kings slowed down just a bit and the momentum began to shift.
A gorgeous goal from Matt Coronato and a winner from Jonathan Huberdeau was enough, although Wolf still had to make his fair share of big stops down the stretch. In the end, he wound up turning away 31 of the 32 shots he faced on the night, improving his record at the Saddledome to 11-2-1.
And it was a big win for the Flames, too, as it pulled them to within one point of the Vancouver Canucks, who sit in the Western Conference second Wild Card position, having played one more game.
Here’s three takeaways from Saturday night’s game:
1. Coronato leads the charge
Matt Coronato was the best player on the ice for the Flames on Saturday night, other than Wolf.
The fact that that statement doesn’t feel like a surprise says a lot about how far the 22-year-old has come since the start of the year, when he was sent down to the Wranglers.
Coronato became the fourth Flames player this season to score 10 goals and then added an assist on Jonathan Huberdeau’s game-winner, too.
“There are nights where we talk where Matty wasn’t very good, but they don’t happen very often,” Huska said. “I don’t know if it was his best night, it’s kind of what we expect out of him now. He’s been a really good player for us and he continues to elevate his game.”
Coronato is thriving on a line alongside Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman, and he did nice work to get himself open in the slot on Huberdeau’s power-play game-winner. The shot he fired was impossible for Kings goalie David Rittich to control, and it bounced directly to the stick of the Flames’ leading goal-scorer, who made no mistake burying it.
The goal Coronato scored, though, was a thing of beauty. A hard, perfectly-placed snipe right into the top corner.
“That goal was one of the top ones I think he’s had, for sure, and it came at a very good time for us, as well,” Wolf said. “I’ve got no doubt he’s going to score many more like that.”
2. Dropping ’em
For the second time in five games, Ryan Lomberg dropped the gloves twice.
After picking up two fighting majors against the Vancouver Canucks on New Year’s Eve, Lomberg did it again on Saturday night. And there’s nothing quite like a Lomberg scrap to send the Saddledome crowd into a frenzy.
His first fight came against Kings tough guy Tanner Jeannot, one of the NHL’s heavyweights, while his second tilt was against Kyle Burroughs, who had just laid a big hit on Walker Duehr along the boards.
Fighting Burroughs was about standing up for a teammate. Fighting Jeannot was about shifting momentum.
And it worked.
“He’s an awesome individual, I think he’s an animal,” Huska said. “He punches above his weight class a lot of nights and I have a tonne of respect for how he plays the game.”
After both fights, Lomberg skated to the penalty box with a big smile on his face. He was even caught having a lengthy, friendly conversation with a beer-drinking Flames fan in the sin bin after the Burroughs punch-up.
“Yeah, I hate to admit it but I do enjoy it quite a bit,” Lomberg said. “Usually, it’s a lot to go ask somebody and you don’t really know, you obviously hope to win but you don’t really know how it’s going to go.”
3. Killing it
Prior to Saturday’s game, the Flames had allowed goals while they were on the penalty kill in seven straight games.
It was a problem, even if they felt there were improvements being made.
Finally, though, they managed to get out of a game without allowing their opponents to score on the man advantage, as the Kings went 0-for-3 on their power-plays.
They definitely had their chances, though, particularly earlier in the first period when they fired nine shots on net.
But sometimes having a guy like Wolf between the pipes pays off.
“After the first one I was a little nervous, I think they had nine shots,” Huska said. “There are certain situations where your goaltender, that’s what they get paid for. They have to be your best player in certain situations and I thought after that penalty kill, especially that one at the end of the second period, it gave them a little confidence.
“They looked connected with it, so it was a good night for us to try to build off now.”
There’s still work to be done. One clean sheet doesn’t mean the penalty kill is suddenly fixed.
But it’s a start.