The Calgary Flames lost 3-1 to the Utah Hockey Club on Tuesday night, being swept in their regular season series 3-0 with relative ease.
Here are my three takeaways from the game:
1) Outclassed by Utah throughout the game AND season
According to MoneyPuck, Calgary’s offense registered 2.02 expected goals, whereas Utah had 4.65 expected goals.
Let’s not have it confused, this team is talented and has a bunch of jewels in it. But the difference is evident when comparing the expected goals/actual goals between both Western Conference teams from all three games of the season.
Utah made Calgary’s offensive firepower look very diminutive. The Flames' best expected goals value (2.02) is nowhere NEAR Utah’s worst (3.64). That shows the Flames, simply put, have poor quality of shots.
Some changes will definitely be needed if the Flames hope to keep their playoff dreams alive.
2) Still no luck on the power play
Continuing off point one, the Flames offense had two opportunities on the man-advantage. On the other hand, the Utah Hockey Club went on the PP once. Both teams could not come away with a goal, which is not uncommon.
Here’s the kicker:
Calgary registered an expected goal value of 0.11 in their two power plays, LESS than the 0.21 Utah registered in their lone power play.
It’s one thing to not have quality shots at even strength, but when they don’t come by at man-advantage, what does that say about that team’s offense?
3) Dustin Wolf as great as always
It’s easy to see why Wolf is a bright spot on this roster. With shots raining down on him and a Goals Saved Above Expected value of 1.11, he held the fort as much as he can. He had a save percentage of 92.60 and conceded two goals, which is better than his season average of 90.9 and GAA of 2.66 respectively. He's going places for sure.
The Calgary Flames will come back home to take on the Anaheim Ducks at 7:30 MDT/9:30 EDT on Thursday.
