If you’re on Team Tank, the last few weeks probably haven’t gone the way you hoped.
Dustin Wolf is winning games, and he’s doing it consistently. The Flames’ netminder is 4-0-0 in his last four starts, posting a 1.49 goals-against average, a .943 save percentage, and one shutout during that stretch.
Wolf will look to extend the streak to five straight Tuesday night against the San Jose Sharks — a team he shut out in November with a 17-save performance.
Those results are pulling the Flames back into the conversation in the Western Conference wild card race. Maybe not loudly, but enough to matter. Calgary sits five points out of a playoff spot, and the standings are starting to reflect a team that’s steadied after a difficult opening month.
This is largely the same group that finished last season with 98 points, the highest total in NHL history for a team that didn’t qualify for the postseason. A poor first month put them behind early, but their recent play suggests they’ve found some consistency.
The Flames are 6-3-1 in their last 10 games, and head coach Ryan Huska has liked the way his team is playing.
“A really good complete game where I thought we had a lot of energy … played the game the right way,” Huska said following Saturday’s OT victory against the Kings.
He also credited Wolf for his role in the recent stretch.
“I thought he played really well,” Huska said of Wolf. “When he had to make saves that he needed to at key times he did that for us.”
There’s also belief inside the room that no game is out of reach, regardless of the score.
“I truly don’t think any deficit is too big, I think there’s always hope,” explained Nazem Kadri.
That mindset complicates the idea of a full teardown. It becomes difficult to justify moving key players like Rasmus Andersson or Kadri when the team remains within reach of the playoff picture. If they’re still in contention, those players are part of the reason why.
Can the Flames continue to climb the standings and secure a wild card spot? It won’t be easy, it might not even be ideal, but with Wolf playing at this level, the possibility remains.
For those hoping the Flames would fade to secure a high draft pick, this stretch hasn’t helped that cause. But the objective doesn’t change — teams are built to win. The challenge now is avoiding the middle ground. If Calgary is going to push, the expectation has to be making the postseason and pushing beyond the first round… (as unlikely as that sounds.)
Anything less leaves questions that will be harder to answer later.