As a Calgary Flames fan, I’ve had a really hard time watching goaltender, Miikka Kiprusoff, go from this incredible talent with so much promise, to a struggling player.  I realize that he was exceptionally good when he joined the team but I never figured it was a fluke.  I also know that he had a hard time with Mike Keenan as the head coach over the past couple seasons since their tension was visibly obvious which is pretty significant considering how reserved Kipper is.

When they announced that Brent Sutter would be coming over from the New Jersey Devils, I was …read more

I live in Calgary and, like many places in the world, the locals are scrambling to get vaccinated against the H1N1 virus (a.k.a. swine flu).  The Canadian government isn’t charging residents for the shot but each province has to manage how they get rolled out.
Unfortunately, things have been chaotic and disorganized so some people have had to wait as much as 7 hours while others have even been turned away.  Needless to say, Alberta has some pretty frustrated residents and some have freaked out over reports that the Calgary Flames and their families were vaccinated against the virus in a …read more

Did you catch the Columbus Blue Jackets at Calgary Flames game last night?  The Flames won 6-3 and, while I was happy with the result, it was the goal by Fredrik Sjostrom that served as the highlight for me.
Sure, Calgary didn’t really need it with 4:05 left in the third since they were already up two goals but since Sjostrom is new to the team, I haven’t really seen what he can do and last night I was totally surprised.

He approached the net and couldn’t get a shot away, faked out Columbus goalie, Steve Mason, and then did a spin-o-rama …read more

My Calgary Flames are #1 in the league right now and are off to a perfect start to the 2009-2010 season.  Yes, I realize it’s still very early but this is historic.  According to TSN, “the only other time the Flames won four straight games to start a season was when they captured their first-ever Pacific Division title back in 1993-94.”
The improved start comes along with new head coach, Brent Sutter, and I really think that he is making a major difference with the players and goaltender, Miikka Kiprusoff.  We’re seeing the big names doing well but also guys like …read more

The Calgary Flames took on the visiting Montreal Canadiens last night and it was actually a pretty intense game.  The Flames are now 3-0 for the season so far which is the best they’ve done at the beginning of the year since 1993-1994.

The Flames can thank some unlikely heroes for saving the day, though.  Staffan Kronwall and Adam Pardy really stepped it up adding two assists each (Kronwall actually got his first NHL goal which ended up being the game-winner!) but it was Eric Nystrom who really made the difference.  He scored two goals and I’m willing to go on …read more

It was a big night in my neck of the woods.  Last night was the first Battle of Alberta and was the first home game of the season for the Edmonton Oilers.  I’m not even going to go into how lame I thought their whole pre-game celebration was (I’m sorry but it was really stupid to me) since I was really just interested in their starting lineup.

After the Calgary Flames were stonewalled by goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin in the Stanley Cup playoffs against the Tampa Bay Lightning, I’ve always hated playing against him.  I wanted to see how Miikka Kiprusoff would …read more

As a Calgary Flames fan, the first couple weeks are pretty brutal especially since for the last few seasons, Miikka Kiprusoff is downright painful to watch during the beginning of the season.  Last night’s season opener against the Vancouver Canucks gave me hope that bringing Brent Sutter on as the new head coach is going to make a big difference – for the better.
The Flames in general were peppier and more aggressive than usual and Kipper was just part of their 5-3 victory.  He stopped 39 of the 42 shots he faced including one save that really should have gone …read more

For a brief space in time, it seemed like Theoren Fleury might be destined to live out a Cinderella story this upcoming season.  He got permission to return to hockey after his indefinite suspension was lifted by the NHL and then he was invited to the Calgary Flames training camp.  He scored a shootout winner in a pre-season game and I began to believe that I would see him dressing with the team next week.  Unfortunately, Flames GM Darryl Sutter felt that he just wasn’t in good enough shape to play. 
“There was a decision made here this morning that, …read more

While it’s hardly the performance of a lifetime, the fact that Theoren Fleury scored a goal in a shootout for the Calgary Flames last night is definitely making people stop and pay attention.  Fleury was invited to the Flames training camp after the NHL lifted his indefinite suspension.
The 41-year-old hasn’t played professional hockey in years but he showed last night that his skates might not be as rusty as some people think after scoring the shootout winner as the Flames beat the New York Islanders 5-4.  The crowd at the Pengrowth Saddledome could be heard chanting “Theo, Theo” to show …read more

I know that some people might disagree with me but I really liked Daryl Sutter as the head coach for the Calgary Flames and I was pretty disappointed when he stepped down (especially when Jim Playfair stepped up as his replacement).
I was encouraged with Mike Keenan was brought out since, after their abysmal season with Playfair, I thought Iron Mike’s style might whip the boys into shape.  From the outside, it looks like Keenan made Miikka Kiprusoff stressed, Dion Phaneuf weak and the locker room intense.  I like the Flames’ reputation as a hard-working, aggressive team but they just seemed …read more