Expect a strong bounce-back performance from Flames against Panthers

Expect the Calgary Flames, after losing four on the trot, to have a bounce-back performance against the high-flying Florida Panthers on Tuesday night. 

All is not right in the Flames camp. That’s blatantly obvious after bearing witness to the team’s listless effort in the 4-1 loss to the Sens on Thursday night. While the excessively long gap between games isn’t exactly the formula for success, it has provided Darryl Sutter the opportunity to address his side’s frailties.

Four days certainly isn’t long enough to redress all of Calgary’s deficiencies, but it is more than enough time to wait for a chance at redemption. Way more than two points is on the line on Tuesday. A restoration of pride, for one, is up for grabs, along with a prime chance for the Flames to prove they can compete with the league’s best.

If the Flames find a way to conquer the Eastern Conference’s best team, they can once again be considered a threat in the West. Sutter’s teams prides themselves on being hard to beat and almost impossible to have their will broken.

Florida has won eight of their last nine and the last two by an outrageous 16-3 combined margin. You can clearly see the immense challenge that lies ahead for the reeling Calgary Flames. The Panthers thrashed Calgary 6-2 in Florida on Jan. 4, offering the Flames even more of an incentive, as if they needed any.

Most professionals hockey players have larger-than-life egos. It’s a pre-requisite of being an elite athlete. These players, without almost-unbreakable self-confidence, wouldn’t be where they are today.

And losing four games on the bounce in such emphatic fashion will not sit well with anyone in that locker room, which, among the other aforementioned reasons, is why the Calgary Flames will put up an epic fight against the NHL’s best.

Only time will tell whether that will be enough to secure both points.