CALGARY -- Wonder Woman had hers. So did Bill and Ted. And Monday night, the Flames and Canucks play a sequel that the Flames hope hits about as well as the first installment of the 2021 season that took place Saturday night.
That's when the Flames picked up their first win of the season, blanking the Canucks 3-0. Jacob Markstrom got the shutout, a 32 save effort against his former team.
The Flames earned full marks for that victory but team captain Mark Giordano says they’ll have to be even better if they want to make it two in a row over Vancouver Monday night.
“It feels almost like a playoff atmosphere where you know we got game one. Game two you know they’re going to be at their best,” the captain said.
“They’re going to have that desperation so you kind of prepare for it that way. You’re going to have a desperate team coming in tonight and a team playing exceptionally hard so we’ve got to match that.”
It’s going to be different in the NHL this season because you’ll be facing teams in multiple games. Next month for example the Flames will play four in a row against the Canucks.
Veteran forward Derek Ryan says the key for success is to have a short memory.
“It’s similar to a playoff series where you just kind of flush that first game or whatever it is and it’s a brand new fresh slate for the next game. I think the teams that will have the most success will be the best at being able to do that.”
On Saturday night, the Flames used a deadly power play to beat the Canucks. Calgary scored all three of its goals with the man advantage.
Jay Beagle is one of the Canucks' penalty killers and the Calgarian says his team has got to be a lot better on special teams.
“I mean we lost the last game because of it. As someone who’s on the penalty kill that’s my job and it’s been addressed and it’s something you take pride in,” Beagle said.
“Obviously you lose some sleep after a game like that because it’s the reason we lost.”
The Flames will go with the same lineup tonight against the Canucks. That means Markstrom will once again face his former team.
