Calgary Flames’ 3M Line Needs To Be The First Powerplay Unit
By Ramina Shlah
A big reason for the Calgary Flames recent powerplay success is because of the 3M line. So why aren’t they the first powerplay unit?
Since the end of November, the Calgary Flames powerplay success has skyrocketed from the start of the season. Since the beginning of December until now, they’re first overall on the PP with 32.0%.
A big reason for this recent success? The 3M line, better known as the line with Matthew Tkachuk, Mikael Backlund, and Michael Frolik. But for some reason, the Flames coaching staff still has them as the second PP unit.
I remember specifically, there was one game where the first PP unit was on and the powerplay was going terribly and I tweeted out, “This pp is so bad to watch.” Then about 30 seconds later, with a line change and the second unit coming on, I tweeted “PP GOAL!” They were back-to-back tweets and it was kind of funny.
It probably wasn’t that funny. I’m just really tired right now. Moving on.
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Now, since January, their PP hasn’t been as successful as December. It’s still great however, with 27.6% and they still have eight PPG in nine games. But it could be better.
They’re getting a majority of the powerplay goals lately
Like I said, since the start of January, the Calgary Flames have just eight PPG. The second PP unit with the 3M line and Mark Giordano and Dougie Hamilton being on the blue line, they have five of those eight goals.
Backlund and Gio are also leading for PPP in that time frame, with five each. Tkachuk is third for PPP with three of them. Gaudreau just has one while Monahan and Versteeg each have two.
So this begs the question. Why aren’t they on first PP unit yet?
Not only are they leading in PPP, but they’ve also recently taken the reigns with points. Backlund right now leads the Flames with 33 points in 48 games. Tkachuk is tied for second with 29 points in 44 games in his rookie year.
Powerplay is frustrating to watch… until the second unit comes on the ice
Just a few days ago on January 19th, 2017, the Flames played the Nashville Predators. The Flames were down 4-0 with about four minutes left of the game and somehow the Flames made it 4-3 with 48 seconds left of the game. Unfortunately, the Flames couldn’t tie it up and ended up losing that game.
However.
At one point, the Flames had a 5-on-3 powerplay where they couldn’t capitalize. Now, people on Twitter were going crazy because the 3M line wasn’t starting that PP and fans knew they wouldn’t score without them.
And spoiler alert, they didn’t.
Now, when this game ended and the Flames were down by just a goal, it left fans frustrated. “Imagine if the 3M line had started on the 5-on-3.” This was also an important conference game, and if Flames could have won that game, it would have been huge. That PP also came in the first period when the score was just1-0 for the Preds. If the Flames had capitalized on that PP, it may have been a completely different game.
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Yeah, they may not have always been the primary option, but it’s a New Year and this team is constantly going through ups and downs this season. It’s definitely time for another change and that change is for 3M to be the first PP unit.