Calgary Flames scorers off to hot start in NHL preseason so far
Eighteen goals in three preseason NHL games so far. All this from a Calgary Flames club that's in rebuilding mode.
Wait. The key word there might be preseason. The trio of games across three cities in two nights have come against rusty or inexperienced squads. And yet, when you break down the scoring — not to mention the obvious lack of scoring against each of the Flames lineups so far — there is some evidence of a scoring potential not many were talking about this summer.
On Monday, the Flames beat the Edmonton Oilers both in Calgary and in Edmonton, 6-1 and 6-3. On Sunday, they beat the Seattle Kraken 6-1. Abundant goals from key players.
The who is important.
Goals from Matthew Coronato (4), Connor Zary (2), Yegor Sharangovich (2), Nazem Kadri (1) and Anthony Mantha (1) could all be key members of the Flames offence this season.
Coronoto has been Mr. Preseason for the Flames with back-to-back two-goal games — picking up right where he left off after a stellar September last year. He's definitely making a case to stick around again.
Zary fit like a glove on the Mikael Backlund, Blake Coleman line. The Flames also hope the Jonathan Huberdeau tic-tac-toe give and go with Mantha is a sign of things to come.
The how was even more promising.
Even in the preseason, goals can be hard to come by. You have to be in the right areas for a smart deflection, a juicy rebound, or to time your arrival in a prime release area. Those are the kinds of things we're seeing from the Calgary Flames so far. Both Coronato and Zary — two massive parts of the franchise's future — have shown an ability to pick corners with quick and deceptive shots. Sharangovich's pair in his debut are reflective of the 35-goal season he's looking to improve on.
His rocket from the right side on the off wing in Edmonton was absolutely lethal.
Nothing statistically matters until the regular-season begins, but the Flames offence is certainly off to a fun start.