CALGARY — MacKenzie Weegar has been asked, like many of his teammates before him, if this year’s Calgary Flames are truly different from last year’s disappointing team. Instead of solely providing his thoughts, he decided to flip the question.
“I guess I’ve got to ask you that question,” the Flames defenceman said. “Do you feel it’s changed a bit? Do you feel better coming to the rink?”
Advertisement
It’s a worthwhile exercise to ponder. Because on the surface, things are different for the Flames. The figureheads leading the front office and their bench have changed from last year, with some key new additions at each level. There are even changes in the locker room decor, with wooden panels resting atop the stalls boasting three words that could make sense as a mantra: “Compete, Commitment, Consistency.” It will have to do until 2026 or 2027 at the earliest.
The coaches have already implemented new concepts for their players to learn: zonal marking for the defence and an uptempo, creatively flowing offence for the forwards. We’ve even seen them practise three-on-three overtime, something that wasn’t done last year. It has also been refreshing to see younger players take centre stage, notably Matthew Coronato, who has gotten top-six minutes and power-play time. Jakob Pelletier would have been a lock for the team had he not suffered a shoulder injury in preseason action.
Even the atmosphere during media availabilities is noticeably lighter. Why else would Pelletier feel comfortable making a passing joke at his former boss who didn’t remember what number he wore?
“I feel like the culture has changed,” Weegar added. “The identity in the locker room has changed. But the guys haven’t changed much. We still got the same group of guys, which is great, but I just feel like it’s a better atmosphere.”
Those changes played a role in Mikael Backlund extending his contract with the Flames, and the team will have no problem telling the media how much better the vibes around them are. Jonathan Huberdeau is rediscovering the joy of playing hockey after a bad last season. Rasmus Andersson says it’s been fun being with his teammates in anticipation of the new season. Even Jacob Markstrom has had his fun around the media to start the year.
Advertisement
But it’s on the Flames to turn those good vibes into actual proof that they’re an improved team. Wednesday’s night 5-3 win over the Winnipeg Jets could only tell us so much, but it wasn’t the impressive performance we expected with an improved ambiance.
The Flames were dominated at five-on-five, losing the Corsi and high-danger battles. The power play got a goal, but they aren’t playing at the optimal tempo needed, according to assistant coach Marc Savard. Calgary’s zone defence was leaky, allowing chances and leaving Jets players untouched in their own end, particularly in front of their own net.
GO DEEPER
Inside the mind of Marc Savard, who brings his coaching creativity to Calgary
“We’ll have to fix it, for sure,” Flames head coach Ryan Huska said. “That’s not the place you want to give up scoring chances. But Winnipeg did a good job tonight. There’s some times when you look at teams when they lose games, they deserve to lose them. Sometimes they deserve a better fate, and they probably deserved a better fate tonight.”
Instead, the Flames’ third-period resiliency propelled them to victory. Andrew Mangiapane had a three-point game, assisting on the game-winning goal from Elias Lindholm with a nice pass from behind the net with under 90 seconds to go. Both players had multi-point games, as did Huberdeau. But they probably don’t get that chance to come back if not for Markstrom’s 34 saves.
It wasn’t a perfect performance — the first goal Markstrom allowed crept through his pads and beat him five-hole — but he kept his team afloat as long as he could. His best saves came at the end of the second when he extended his right pad to deny a tying goal from the Jets as the buzzer sounded.
“I thought everyone on the ice was confident and we believe in each other,” Markstrom said. “It’s been a long wait for the season to start. And now it’s here. Now, it’s fun to go back to work, battle and just play important games for points. There’s not a better feeling than to come out with a big W after a tight game.”
Advertisement
In fairness to the Flames, one game won’t tell you if you’re due for a good season. The Flames raced out to a 5-1-0 start last year before their eventual descent and missed the playoffs by two points. But regardless of how the Flames would have looked Wednesday night, it’s fair to ask questions about this year’s team.
The Flames more or less have the same roster from last season, but have they replaced Tyler Toffoli’s production? It remains to be seen. Is the power play, and offence in general, suitable enough to compete with other contending teams? Have they built enough chemistry?
The league’s best teams have adopted the zone formation on defence, but it remains a work in progress with the Flames. Can they get up to speed?
They’ve gotten younger with Coronato and even newcomers like A.J. Greer and Yegor Sharangovich, which is in line with the team’s desires. But did they go far enough? Dustin Wolf still isn’t an NHLer. His time will come soon, but what will it take?
Is the Markstrom of last year gone? The running jokes about him allowing a goal on the first shot he sees haven’t stopped, unfortunately.
Markstrom doesn’t even want to think about that previous version of himself.
“We play one game this year and then we’re looking for Game 2. We’re (not) looking back,” Markstrom said. “Now we’ve just got to keep looking forward and we’re not going to compare seasons, 10 years ago. Fifteen years ago, I was 18 years old. So, that doesn’t matter what I did. We’re looking forward here.”
You can’t blame the team for wanting to distance itself from last year’s debacle. However, they have to get better and prove themselves as a team worth trusting in. It goes beyond the fact that their next five games are on the road. You think of the fans who want to see improvements, cringing at the possibility of a team stuck with expensive contracts while in a mushy middle. It affects whether or not players like Noah Hanifin and even Lindholm see themselves in Calgary beyond this season. It all blends with the team’s aspirations for this year, an opportunity for them to prove they are a good team that just needed a few tweaks.
If those improvements don’t come soon, it will be difficult not to think of the team as a disappointment, just like last year.
(Photo of Jacob Markstrom and Nikita Zadorov: Sergei Belski / USA Today)