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Calgary Flames: Five Reasons Their Season Has Turned Around

By Ramina Shlah

Feb 28, 2017; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames defenseman TJ Brodie (7) celebrates his goal against the Los Angeles Kings with the rest of the team during the overtime period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Calgary Flames won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 28, 2017; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames defenseman TJ Brodie (7) celebrates his goal against the Los Angeles Kings with the rest of the team during the overtime period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Calgary Flames won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 26, 2017; Raleigh, NC, USA; Calgary Flames goalie Brian Elliott (1) stops the shot by Carolina Hurricanes forward Sebastian Aho (20) at PNC Arena. The Calgary Flames defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 3-1. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 26, 2017; Raleigh, NC, USA; Calgary Flames goalie Brian Elliott (1) stops the shot by Carolina Hurricanes forward Sebastian Aho (20) at PNC Arena. The Calgary Flames defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 3-1. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports /

BRIAN ELLIOTT

Brian Elliott has had quite the season this year. After having a bit of a rough season and not exactly finding his game, he’s completely turned that around. Since the All-Star break at the end of January, the Calgary Flames employed a win-and-start goaltending method. Basically, if you win, you start the next game. And boy, did Elliott take that to heart.

Related Story: Brian Elliott vs Chad Johnson Debate

He’s been absolutely incredible since then. Since the All-Star break, he has the second best record of all goaltenders in the league, right after Braden Holtby of the Washington Capitals, who were also just on a hot-streak themselves. He is 9-1-1 since the break and is currently on a six-game win streak. He is even 10-1-1 since the game before the All-Star break where the Flames really picked up their game and they owed it a lot to their loss 5-1 loss against the Montreal Canadiens.

Since that game, Elliott is 10-1-1 and the Flames have the best record in the NHL and most amount of points since that loss. They’re 12-2-1 and don’t seem to be slowing down. And a big reason for this? Of course, Brian Elliott.

From the start of the season until that loss against the Habs, his record was 8-12-2, he had a save percentage of 0.891 and GAA of 2.92. Since then, his record is, like we mentioned, 10-1-1, he has a 0.927 sv% and 2.16 GAA. Definitely a large improvement in his play. Also in those 12 games, he allowed two goals or less in ten of the games.

I guess the change in goalie pants didn’t affect Elliott.

Via Calgaryflames.com:

"“He’s just playing now,” Flames goaltending coach Jordan Sigalet said. “At the start of the year he was thinking a lot coming into a new situation, new team, new surroundings, new city. “Now he’s just playing his game.”"

Elliott finally finding his game and bailing the Flames out when they allow over 30 shots like they have been almost every game this past week and not allowing more than two shots shows his true abilities and shows that he wants to help his new team into a playoff spot.

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