Calgary Flames: Older Hands Leading The Way

The Calgary Flames haven’t exactly had a year of ‘smooth sailing’ thus far but the last five games have seen an upshot in form, led by the veterans of the team.

Granted, two of these results were the 3-1 loss against the Tampa Bay Lightning and 4-1 dropped game to the Chicago Blackhawks.

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On the flip though, there was the Calgary Flames pair of over-time wins over the offensively gifted Washington Capitals and reigning champions, the Blackhawks in the return fixture, as well as a 3-2 score line against the New Jersey Devils.

The most interesting outcome from this improved form has been the players leading the way on the scoring chart.

Now, you’d expect Calgary Flames youngsters like Sean Monahan, Johnny Gaudreau and Sam Bennett to be right up there, and they are. But it’s some of the older hands that are lending their talents to putting the puck in the net.

The last five games leading scorers look like this:

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David Jones, Joe Colborne and Matt Stajan have picked up their game on the offensive lines, whilst T.J. Brodie has continued his remarkable form this year, with Kris Russell and Dennis Wideman finally providing some back-up in terms of offense production from the blue-line.

In the case of David Jones, he’s been on fire of late; reaching a milestone 100^th NHL goal and taking Jiri Hudler’s spot on the Calgary Flames first power play unit.

He has also shown some great chemistry with Joe Colborne, more than a few of his points involving Joe in some way.

It’s no surprise that once some of the older heads start producing that the younger guys tallies also increase. It’s these guys that are generally relied upon for leadership, whether verbal in the locker-room or leading by example, on the ice.

If the Calgary Flames are to turn this year around, it’ll be veterans like 31 year-old Jones, 25 year-old Colborne and the likes of Wideman and Russell on the blue line to show their experience and lead the charge.

Whilst, nobody is honestly expecting a real run at the Stanley Cup this year, stranger things have happened – the mix of youth and experience fits the mold, if nothing else.

Next: Post-Blackhawks Injury Update

Is there anyone else in strong form lately that we’ve missed? Let us know in the comments section below.

Stats courtesy of NHL.com.