Flames pull away from Canucks, lead series 2-1
The Calgary Flames take a 2-1 series lead. (USATSI)
Every night during the Stanley Cup playoffs, Eye On Hockey writers Adam Gretz and Chris Peters will bring you up to speed everything you need to know about all of the action around the NHL. Here is what you need to know about Canucks vs. Flames Game 3
Vancouver Canucks vs. Calgary Flames, Game 2
Flames 4, Canucks 2 | Flames lead series 2-1 | Game 4, Tuesday
Game 3 in a nutshell: What an incredible season for the Flames. Not only did they shock pretty much the entire hockey world by making the playoffs and outlasting the defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings, but now they are halfway to the second round of the playoffs following their 4-2 win on Sunday night. And it was a pretty convincing win for the Flames as they received contributions from all over their lineup, including several of their young players that are going to be the foundation of their team going forward. These teams are also developing quite a strong dislike for one another that was once again on display on Sunday.
Turning point: T.J. Brodie‘s goal late in the first period to give the Flames a 2-1 lead just a couple of minutes after the Canucks were able to tie the game. With Mark Giordano out of the lineup it has really been an opportunity for Brodie to shine and show that he is a great player on his own and not just a creation of playing alongside one of the best defensman in the league.
Three things we learned
1. For most of the night these two teams seemed like they were going to behave themselves after the game ending line brawl in Game 2 that resulted in a $50,000 fine for Flames coach Bob Hartley. It was physicaly, it was a little nasty at times. But things remained fairly calm. Right up until Alex Burrows earned an instigator penalty in the final five minutes and then Kevin Bieksa lost his mind on Michael Ferland a few minutes after that. Things never quite reached Game 2 level gong show, but frustration was definitely starting to set in for the Canucks. Of course, it was pretty hilarious that it was Brandon Bollig, one of the players on the ice for the brawl in Game 2, that opened scoring on Sunday night. He only scored one goal in 62 games this season.
2. There are a lot of reasons to believe the Flames’ success this season has been a mirage. There are also a lot of reasons to believe this season is the start of something special in Calgary, including their trio of young stars Sean Monahan, Johnny Gaudreau and Sam Bennett. They all factored into the scoring in some way on Sunday, and Gaudreau was once again a human highlight reel with the puck. Bennett, the No. 4 overall pick in 2014, scored his first career goal after appearing in just one game during the regular season.
3. Flames rookie forward Michael Ferland isn’t messing around out there when it comes to physical play. He averaged nearly one hit per minute of ice time on Sunday night, and while that can be a misleading, poorly tracked and at times useless stat, every single one of Ferland’s hits on Sunday was legitimate, loud, and big. He also finally got under the skin of Bieksa late in the game and had to eat several of his punches in the final minute of the game.
Video of the game: The aforementioned goal from Sam Bennett to give the Flames a little extra cushion in the third period.
Congrats on your first, Samuel. https://t.co/uDLAFILDTZ
— NHL (@NHL) April 20, 2015
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