On a wild night at the Scotiabank Saddledome, where in-house media personalities and those across the hockey community speculated on a potential trade between the Calgary Flames and Philadelphia Flyers, there was a hockey game between the Flames and Anaheim Ducks.
Powered by Matthew Coronato’s two goals and Dustin Wolf’s 30 saves, Calgary got back into the second wildcard position with a 4-1 win over the Ducks.
Flames Outscore the NHL’s Lowest-Scoring Team
As mentioned in the pre-game notes, the Flames scored 130 goals before the opening face-off, while the Ducks tallied 127, the two lowest-scoring teams in the league. Luckily, Calgary found ways to beat a usually challenging opponent, John Gibson, to secure a 4-1 victory.
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Even though the home team was outshot in this one, 31-30, there was enough hustle and opportunity to create offense, which isn’t a trademark of the Flames offensive attack.
Meanwhile, as the game started to get out of hand for the Ducks, the physicality picked up, and the Flames did not back down from any scrums, especially in the dying seconds, protecting Dustin Wolf.
Coronato Has Magical Night
In his 80th NHL game, Matthew Coronato scored his first career hat trick, or so we thought. He scored his first of the night with 44 seconds left in the second to put the Flames up 2-1 before potting the insurance goal with about four minutes to go and then firing one the length of the ice for an empty net goal.
However, the NHL made an official scoring change on the first goal, awarding it to Blake Coleman, who was in front of Gibson when Coronato sniped it home. A few hours after the game, the league made the announcement, which means the youngster didn’t get a hat trick or game-winner.
Even though Coronato lost his first NHL hat trick, he had one of the best performances of his young career. As one of the key players in the lineup who should be supporting top scorers Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri, Thursday night’s performance is a reminder of what Coronato is capable of when he focuses on shooting more.
Klapka Shines in Second Game Since Recall
On Tuesday, Adam Klapka returned to the Flames lineup and played seven minutes over ten shifts, registering no shots and earning a penalty in the third period.
However, against the Ducks, it was like Klapka was shot out of a cannon. Not only did he score Calgary’s first goal in the middle period, but he was one of the team’s leaders with four shots.
After skating just seven minutes in his first game back, he almost doubled his ice time against Anaheim, finishing the night at 13:46. Moreover, Klapka scored his first goal since Apr. 18, 2024, and skated over ten minutes for only the second time in his career.
Energized by a recent call-up, Klapka is finding his groove with new teammates and making a case to remain in the lineup.
Blockbuster Trade Overshadows Game
The rumors began during warm-ups when Andrei Kuzmenko was no longer in the lineup. Then, Jakub Pelletier departed the game after six shifts and social media was on fire, claiming both players were part of a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers.
As the Flames battled in a one-goal game, team executives were busy completing a deal that brought Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost to the organization.
Ultimately, it was a successful night on and off the ice, as Calgary picked up two valuable points for their playoff push and retooled the lineup for the stretch drive. As many social media users pointed out, it was tough to watch the game and hit refresh on feeds to see if and when an official trade went through.
