A View From the Press Box: Flames vs. Kings

Flames lose to Kings in OT

 

Tanner Pearson scored the game winner with 26.1 seconds remaining in overtime for a 2 to 1 victory for the LA Kings over the Calgary Flames.

Going into the game the Flames had occupied 3rd place in the Pacific Division with 56 points. Los Angeles trailed Calgary by only 1 point with the Flames holding a game in hand and the Kings were seated 4th in the Western wild card race. It was a very important divisional match for both teams.

The first period started off as a tight contest with very little flow. The Flames survived 2 power play changes by the Kings. While killing a penalty Mark Jankowski had a breakaway but back up goalie Darcy Kuemper got the better of him and made a great save. A sign of things to come as Kuemper who was the starting goalie due to Jonathan Quick’s injury had a stellar performance and received first star of the game. A tic – tack – toe play featuring Monahan to Ferland, Ferland to Gaudreau and Gaudreau back to Monahan for Sean Monahan’s 22nd of the season was a beauty! It was the highlight goal of the evening. The Flames held a 1 – 0 lead after the first period.

In the second period the Flames out-shot the Kings 16 to 8 and should have had a handsome lead but Kuemper stole the show. The score remained 1 – 0 after 40 minutes.

In the third period Kings defenseman Jake Muzzin scored on a power play to tie the score 1 – 1. Incidentally, Muzzin ripped a shot off the post in the first period but finally got rewarded in the third.

The Flames out-shot the Kings 31 – 27 in the game but in the overtime period the Flames did not obtain a shot on goal while the Kings had 4 shots including the eventual game winner by Pearson.

For the Flames, Mike Smith and especially Johnny Gaudreau played exceptionally well. However, it was a disappointing game at home overall for the Flames. The team is not going to win too many games scoring only one goal! Nevertheless, the team obtained a point and the outcome of the game did not change the standings for either team.