Iggy Pops but Ducks Swim

“Except for a couple of shifts, we played a pretty solid game. It was just one of those games where you had to be in the trenches, and we did a good job.” - coach Brent Sutter

The Calgary Flames just can’t get their motor running at Anaheim’s Honda Center. Despite a surging offensive attack that pelted 43 pucks toward Duck goaltender J-S Giguere and a tight and tidy defensive display, the Flames were unable to skate away with a victory on Monday evening. They did, however, earn an “A” for effort as the Anaheim Ducks continued their home ice dominance over the Stampede City crusaders with a 3-2 shootout victory.

The Ducks, mired in last place in the Western Conference before gaining the two-point decision, have won 10 straight games over the Flames in the decidedly friendly confines of the Honda Center. Duck goaltender J-S Giguere stopped 41 shots to earn the victory, the first time he has placed a positive checkmark on the regular season win/loss ledger since March of 2009.

Teemu Selanne, the third marksmen of the shootout session, registered the game-winning goal with a cunning ploy. The flashy Finn stormed toward the Flames net, slammed on the brakes and patiently waited for Kiprusoff to flinch. When he did, Selanne whipped a shot over the Kipper’s shoulder to bring the proceedings to a close in Anaheim’s favor.

Only a last-minute goal from super savior Jarome Iginla kept the verdict from falling in the Ducks favor during regulation time. With only 18 ticks remaining on the clock and Miikka Kiprusoff perched on the pine for an extra attacker, Iginla and Olli Jokinen parlayed a pretty give-and go into the tying tally. Jokinen surged over the Anaheim line, drawing a trio of defenders to him. Jokinen then slipped a clever cross-ice feed to the captain, who deftly deposited the gift behind a flustered Giguere.

Curtis Glencross opened the scoring for Calgary thirteen minutes into the opening stanza, breaking behind the Anaheim defense before snapping a wrist shot into the top shelf of the Ducks’ cage. It was the 17th time in 22 games that Calgary has dented the twine before their opposition – easily the best mark in the league.

Calgary’s advantage was short-lived, however. Only 67 seconds after Glencross lit the lamp for the first time in ten games, newly recalled forward Jamie Lundmark burped up the puck near the Kipper’s crease. Duck forward Corey Perry leaped on the loose puck and slipped the disc to Bobby Ryan, who slammed it home to tie the affair at 1-1. Perry’s assist extended his points-scoring streak to a career-best 15 games, the longest current stretch of productivity in the league and only two games shy of the franchise record, set by Teemu Selanne in the 1998-99 season.

The swift retribution by the Ducks extended an alarming trend for the Flames. It was the 11th time this season that Calgary have allowed two-or-more goals in less than 125 seconds – a porous statistic that coach Sutter and his charges will have to rectify.

Despite that daunting dent in the defensive design, the Flames deserved a better fate and an extra point in the point’s column. Playing with vigor, vitality and perseverance, Calgary controlled the pace and flow of the contest, but were stymied on numerous occasions by the revitalized Giguere, who robbed Curtis Glencross, Jay Bouwmeester and Olli Jokinen on numerous occasions.

The two-game road trip and the positive results provided a much-needed boost of confidence for the Flames, who play with patience and purpose away from home but seem to attract controversy, conflict and calamity at the ‘dome. The team has a home date with Phoenix on Wednesday before departing on a six-game, cross-country trek that carries the club from Detroit to San Jose.