The Calgary Flames have crawled their way back into the contention for home-ice advantage in the opening round of the 2017 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. With their opponent and seeding still to be decided, we will take a look at a realistic, potential first round matchup for the Flames, their biggest rival, the Edmonton Oilers.
It has been ten years since the Edmonton Oilers were playoff bound, and the Flames appear to be playoff bound for the first time since 2015. Connor McDavid has spearheaded a resurgence of the Oilers franchise, while Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan have kept Calgary Flames fans optimistic for their own future. This would be an enjoyable series for the hockey world and bring a meaning to the Battle of Alberta that hasn’t graced the rivalry since 1991.
Veteran presence – Calgary
Brian Elliott. Troy Brouwer. Michael Frolik. Kris Versteeg. These are all players who have significant playoff experience or have appeared in a Stanley Cup Final over the course of their careers. This young core has also eleven games under their belt in the playoffs too. Cam Talbot sat behind Henrik Lundqvist during the New York Rangers playoff run in 2014. Milan Lucic has played well in the playoffs, winning a Cup in 2011 with the Boston Bruins and another appearance in 2013 as well. The Oilers are relatively young, and lack some of the experience the Flames boast.
Calgary Flames
While Mark Giordano has no playoff experience himself, he is a leader in the Flames locker room and has learned from great veterans like Jarome Iginla on how to be a great leader and winner. He also too is complemented by a skilled player in Dougie Hamilton on his defensive pair. Hamilton has appeared in a Stanley Cup Final while paired with Zdeno Chara in Boston. Upper hand is Calgary here.
Forwards – Calgary
How can a team with Connor McDavid not have a better forward group? Because Connor McDavid is one player and cannot score every goal for your team throughout the season. Take McDavid off of the Oilers, and its doubtful they are a playoff team. He is one of the best players in the world, if not the best, but their team doesn’t possess the forward depth the Flames have. The Flames third line of Versteeg – Sam Bennett/Matt Stajan – Brouwer is more talented than Benoit Pouliot, David Desharnais, and Zack Kassian. The Flames second line is better than Edmonton’s second line as well. The 3M line of Mikael Backlund, Michael Frolik and Matthew Tkachuk has been a more consistent line than a line of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle and Milan Lucic.
The Oilers might have a better top line because of McDavid, but the Flames have overall better depth and skill at the forward position.
Defense – Calgary
While the Edmonton has some solid young talent in Oscar Klefbom, Adam Larsson and Darnell Nurse, the Flames have young depth at this position as well. While this isn’t the typical Oilers defense of recent years past, the Flames have skill at the top pair and the bottom pair as well.
Dougie Hamilton has developed into the player Brad Treliving and Co. hoped he would be when they acquired him from Boston. TJ Brodie is starting to look like the underrated star he has proven to be over the past few years. Mark Giordano continues to lead this team as well, playing a more shutdown role and continuing to chip in on the scoresheet. Michael Stone has been able to complement Brodie with excellence since his acquisition from Arizona. Derek England and Matt Bartkowski provide excellent depth for a dynamic top six group on the backhand. The upper hand here is definitely in the Flames favor despite the Oilers improvement on D.
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Special Teams – Even
Both teams have lethal power plays. Both teams can run two good units. Calgary draws a lot of penalties, which can hamper themselves in this series. The Flames have a much better penalty kill, scoring more short handed goals than the Oilers but, if you give Connor McDavid power play time, he will make you pay. So the one lethal power play weapon for the Oilers negates the positives that the Flames own on their end.
Goaltending – Calgary
While Cam Talbot is a highly touted goaltender, the Flames have the upper hand in net here. Brian Elliott has the ability to steal a series or two during this time of the year. After his poor play early on this season, he is playing like that elite goaltender that he was over the past five years. Brian Elliott has much more playoff experience than Cam Talbot. Plus Elliott has shown to be able to play his very best when the season is on the line. The upper hand goes to the one they call “Moose”.
There hasn’t been a goaltender as talented as Brian Elliott in Calgary since Miikka Kiprusoff retired in 2013. Expect him to take this team to another level in the present and in a few weeks.
Overall – Calgary
While Edmonton have swept the season series, the Flames are a much better team now than early on in the season. Brian Elliott has gotten his game together. The Flames are rolling four lines and three defensive pairs. The Flames are one of the hottest teams since January 26th, catching the Oilers in the standings in the process. The possibility of this series is very real, and both teams will appreciate to see this rivalry have some meaning in the playoffs. It has been since 1991 since these two bitter rivals met, when Theo Fleury showed the world his celebration for the game winning goal in Game 6.
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Hopefully the Flames could hold off the Oilers in a potential Game 7 if it goes the distance like 1991. This would be the best case scenario to signify the resurgence of a great rivalry if these two rivals met in the opening round.