Another perfect Calgary Flames team extended their preseason tally as they edged the Seattle Kraken 5-4 in Calgary, Alberta, at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Monday night.
Hockey striker Nazem Kadri scored his decisive goal 41 seconds into overtime, passing a pass from Andrey Kuzmenko behind goalie Joey Daccord.
The Kraken scored its first goal through Eeli Tolvanen but the equalizer was scored by Brayden Pachal of the Flames.
3 Key Takeaways from Calgary Flames’ 5-4 OT Victory Over Seattle Kraken
Calgary replied handed in the first intermission to come back into the game when Samuel Honzek scored an unassisted goal. Honzek rushed towards the crease and toured the Joey Daccord before the Flame’s goalie ‘shotting the puck’ to the blocker side, which put the Flames again at the lead.
The power-play goal was initiated by the Kraken when defender Adam Larsson fired the puck at the net, and Shane Wright slammed the puck into the net with a rebound off the goalpost of Dan Vladar in the third period.
Thus, what are the three things that would be most useful for getting from the Flames’ and Seattle Kraken’s Monday night match?
Mikael Backlund departed with an undisclosed injury
Not that the current list of NHL preseason injuries is not long enough, but Flame’s captain Mikael Backlund could be the next to join the list. Backlund did not come out for the third period of the match; nobody could get out of Ryan Huska as to Backlund’s condition during the post-match conference.
“Nothing on Backlund,” he answered when asked for a status report
Last season Backlund who has been with the Flames for the longest was made the team captain. In the regular season, he played all 82 games scoring 15 goals and 24 assists. Sidelining the captain at the onset of the regular season would be unthinkable for the Flames; this season they have set their gaze on finishing in the postseason after failing for two consecutive seasons.
Goaltender Dan Vladar’s performance was Notable
Another performer for Calgary was Vladar, who was given the nod as the team’s no. 1 goalie after Jacob Markstrom left in the offseason, also stood out against the Kraken. Some dramatic saves he retained included a first-period breakaway from Oliver Bjorkstrand.
One of his best saves came in the second period when he denied Shane Wright’s attempt to tuck the rebound beside the net which was very quick on his part.
Vladar finished the night with 30 saves on 33 shots.
Samuel Honzek is doing everything possible to earn a roster post
Honzek was taken 16th overall in the 2023 NHL Draft, and he hopes to prove to his coaching staff that he deserves a spot on the Flames roster come the first of October. Honzek had a great performance against the Kraken and the head coach Ryan Huska applauded this 19-year-old Slovakia for his hard work and progress during the training camp.
“I know having never really seen me last season, people were wondering where is this Honzek guy.” In other words, is he going to grow up into a player? Well, he’s definitely a player,” was Huska’s response. “He is an excellent player, and we are glad with the way he has been training at the moment.”
The Calgary Flames have only two exhibition games left, and both are home and away to the Winnipeg Jets. Games begin on Wednesday evening with the first match at the Canada Life Centre.
