Flames Visual Recap 29: Flames hang on to beat the Oilers in the fifth round of the Battle of Alberta

The latest round of the Battle of Alberta was as highly stressful as any. On one hand, the Calgary Flames are making a midseason push back into the playoff conversation, and on the other, the Edmonton Oilers are trying to get some separation in securing their playoff position.

No goals were scored by either team in the first period, but were some questionable happenings on the ice. Oliver Kylington was hit up high by Jujhar Khaira in which no penalty was called on the play. As a result, Brett Ritchie took matters into his own hands as he squared off against Khaira in a fight.

The end result of the fight was ugly as Ritchie landed a hard punch and Khaira was clearly shaken. Khaira would be pulled from the game for his safety. It’s a no-win situation really, where a bad hit with no immediate consequences for the aggressor resulted in a bad fight with possibly worse outcome. Hoping for good health for Khaira.

The Flames scored twice in the first half of the second period, as Dillon Dube opened the scoring by capitalising on an Oilers turnover and beat Mike Smith cleanly through the five-hole. Elias Lindholm added to the Flames’ lead thanks to a cross-ice pass from Kylington that made for easy work for Lindholm, who seems to consistently elevate his game when playing against the Oilers.

However, Edmonton responded with a goal from Adam Larsson. Before the second period was over, Andrew Mangiapane and Josh Archibald both scored, and the fifth edition of the Battle of Alberta would head into the third with the Flames up 3-2.

Early in the third, the Oilers tied it up thanks to a wicked shot from Leon Draisaitl. Just a minute after, the Flames responded as Noah Hanifin activated on a play and was able to score the game-winning goal.

The Flames win their third in a row in their third game under Sutter. They’re now two points back of the Montreal Canadiens with one extra game played, and five points back from Edmonton with two games in hand.

Check out the game visualisations here: