3 reasons the Calgary Flames lost their series vs the Edmonton Oilers
No. 1: The Calgary Flames have a future hall of fame coach behind their bench. But he couldn’t get his team going.
It’s tough to blame Darryl Sutter. The man has seen and done it all. His plaque is already made for a spot in the hockey hall of fame just waiting for him to retire.
But against the Oilers, he just couldn’t figure out what to do. And to be fair, would anyone? McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Evander Kane were putting up historic numbers this series. Goaltender Mike Smith was also surprisingly good.
Sutter’s been on record saying he doesn’t line match. He likes to roll all four lines. Which under normal circumstances, is fine. Calgary was extremely successful this year with many players hitting career highs all across the board. They aren’t hitting those if Sutter doesn’t believe and trust them.
Against Edmonton, he needed to line match. Throwing out the fourth line of Brett Ritchie, Trevor Lewis and Milan Lucic against McDavid and Draisaitl was the worst decision.
Edmonton was going heavy on the minutes for their top line. Double-shifting McDavid’s line while Sutter was sending out his third and fourth lines.
Even in crucial moments in Game 4 when the Flames needed skill and speed on the ice, out came the slow (in comparison to who was on) line.
This isn’t to be disrespectful to Sutter who’s up for coach of the year. Or the fourth line who performed great all season and even had some highlights in the playoffs.
It’s just when you’re playing a team who’s more skilled than physical, you need to make those adjustments. Ultimately, the Flames coaching staff didn’t.
Read more: Do Flames’ chances of beating Edmonton ride on Chris Tanev’s return?
Not having Chris Tanev on the backend didn’t help. Tanev was hurt against Dallas and missed most of the series against Edmonton.
Next. 3 keys to a Calgary Flames second round win. dark
No matter what side of Red Deer, Alberta you were on we got to witness a Battle of Alberta like no other. Hopefully, it goes in the Flames’ direction next time.