and the heart, and the clutch players, and the fan support.
After the first two games in Chicago in the Hawks vs. Flames series it didn’t look like we were going to be in for a very long playoff season. We couldn’t hold a lead, we couldn’t play for 60 minutes, we didn’t seem to have everyone on the same page. Apparently all the Flames were needing was some good home cookin’.
With another 2 games in the bag the Bulin wall has definitely been showing signs of weakness, and the Hawks as a whole can’t seem to do much to slow the Flames down once they get rolling. Jokinen (finally!) had a monster of a game, and Iginla definitely stepped up to answer some of the yapping from the Hawks big talkers. Nystrom’s goal in the 3rd was absolutely huge, and emphasizes the importance of the secondary scoring the Flames have been getting so far in this series. Nystrom, Glencross and Moss have all been very noticeable when they are on the ice (in a good way), and it is paying off on the scoreboard.
The biggest enemy of the Flames? complacency. Don’t stop hitting, don’t stop the pressure, don’t stop shooting every chance you get. You’ve already seen what happens if you take your foot off the gas… a 4-1 lead evaporates in a very short period of time.
I’m not saying the rest of this series is going to be easy, but it is now a best of 3 and the Flames would appear to have all the momentum. Yes the Hawks managed to come back last night and tie the game with 3 straight goals, but to me that was more us breaking down than them being better than us and asserting dominance.
The best sign of the night made it on to TSN’s highlights, with Jarome’s head pasted on the incredible hulk’s body and “don’t make me angry, you wouldn’t like me when I’m angry” written on it. classic.
“It’s always a good thing for us when Jarome gets that fired up. When he’s on that edge, that’s when he’s playing his best hockey.”
– Craig Conroy on Jarome Iginla
NHL summary
