‘A holiday special’: Flames enter lengthy break feeling good after outlasting Blackhawks
‘Tis the season to be jolly for the Flames, who enter the club’s lengthiest holiday break in decades with a win that had to have everybody feeling great, even though a three-goal period by the Blackhawks threatened to ruin a four-goal lead.
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CALGARY – As nervous as Flames fans may have become with every third-period goal the opposition scored, no one was growing more anxious than Jonathan Huberdeau.
Not just because a three-goal period by the Blackhawks threatened to ruin a four-goal lead, the Christmas spirit, and his latest multi-point effort.
But because he had a flight to catch.
“There was some frustration for sure,” smiled Blake Coleman shortly after a 6-4 Flames win ended at 4:45 p.m. MT.
“Some guys are going to be pushing it for the 6 o’clock flights.
“But that’s what you get for booking them. They know we go to overtime every home game. It was a risky play as it was.
“I think Huby is in pretty tight – he’s probably already in the car.”
At the tail end of an outing that saw the Flames build a 5-1 lead after two periods, Connor Bedard’s bunch pushed back with a trio of goals and plenty of snarl, as the two teams exchanged pleasantries after a number of whistles.
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And while it was all in vain for the rebuilding visitors, it served to generously extend the running time of a joyous Christmas sendoff for the Flames and their fans.
“We made it pretty exciting for the fans – a holiday special,” laughed Coleman, one of four Flames who enjoyed two-point outings.
“Obviously the third we could clean up, but a win is a win.”
Capped by a Mikael Backlund empty-netter, the Flames reached the six-goal mark for the third time this season, dating back to their two opening games.
It marked just the second time in their last 30 games they scored more than three goals in regulation.
Huberdeau wasn’t around to talk about his shorthanded beauty to open the scoring, or his penalty shot miss, as he was racing to the airport for a flight back to Montreal to be with his family.
Connor Zary did stick around to beam over his eighth of the season, on a beauty feed from AHL roomie Jakob Pelletier.
“It’s a season of giving, right? It’s Christmas, we’ll give them a couple goals and let them feel a little better about their game,” he joked about a final period that failed to overshadow his two-point night in front of friends and family in town for Christmas.
“Hey, you never want to come out flat in the third like that, but going into the holiday break, I think we just forget about that and have a good break.”
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‘Tis the season to be jolly for so many more Flames teammates, who enter the club’s lengthiest holiday break in decades with a win that had to have everybody feeling great, including Dustin Wolf, whose slick glove save on Connor Bedard 30 seconds in set the tone.
Matt Coronato had a career-high 21:41 of ice time and six shots on goal, which included his ninth snipe of the year.
Martin Pospisil was a wrecking ball once again, adding four more hits to his list of 20 over the last three games, including a blast that prompted Ryan Donato to attack him, before Brayden Pachal jumped in admirably to break it up.
Huberdeau and Kadri continued their torrid pace over the last nine games, both scoring their 13th goals of the season.
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Coleman’s game-winner helped extend his point streak to five games, alongside Coronato, who had plans to take a redeye to New York.
“He’s playing the game the right way,” said coach Ryan Huska of Coronato.
“He’s a threat offensively for us, like we’ve seen the last number of games, but he’s competitive with his play away from the puck as well. He’s deserving of the increased minutes.”
And after snagging six of a possible ten points on their latest homestand, the team felt deserving of their seven-day break.
Whether they make their flights or not.
