Flames Singe Penguins, 2-1, End Streak(s)
The Penguins entered this afternoon’s matinee matchup with Calgary riding a six-game winning streak that included thumpings of some of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. The Flames, smack in the middle of a five-game road trip and losers of four-straight by a combined score of 17-6, were mired in the doldrums.
If ever a game had TRAP stenciled all over it, this one surely did.
According to script, the Pens, who’d played so darn well since the Christmas break, reverted to some bad old habits that conjured up memories of that horrendous 0-4-4 slide in December.
Namely, a flat-as-a-pancake start that featured more turnovers then your local bakery. We had difficulty transitioning out of our zone, due in no small part to the Flames’ chippy, badgering style. Passes clanked off stick blades or missed the target altogether.
No great surprise that the Flames snatched the early lead on a breakaway goal by Connor Zary at 2:33 of the first period.
To the Pens’ credit, they woke up in the second period and pushed back hard against a very determined foe. Midway through the frame we knotted the score off a turnover in the neutral zone.