Flames Visual Recap 39: Backlund scores in second straight game, Calgary falls short in St. Louis

Coming off of a franchise record 62 shots in regulation from the day prior, the Flames were right back in action against St. Louis. Jacob Markstrom got the nod to start again after earning his league-leading sixth shutout, and no other changes to the lineup were made.

First period

The Flames came into the game tired versus a rested Blues squad, the latter eager to get back at the Flames for the blowout loss handed to them just days ago. Despite that, Calgary had a better start in the first period, but on a quick transition play, Brandon Saad opened the scoring to put the Blues up 1–0.

Just past the midway mark however, Mikael Backlund scored on a tight angle shot to mark goals in back-to-back games for the forward. Backlund and Andrew Mangiapane entered the zone with a blueline pass, and while the Blues had a chance to immediately clear after it was stripped from Mangiapane, he retrieved the loose puck and passed it off to Backlund who was wide open.

Before the period was over, Brayden Schenn restored the one-goal lead for the Blues on another transition play into the Flames zone.

Second period

At the midpoint of the second period, the Blues extended their lead—Saad scoring his second of the night. He found himself wide open in the slot to receive a pass from behind the goal line from Flames skater Adam Ruzicka. It was an unfortunate misplay and the Saad was opportunistic.

The Flames continued to press throughout the period but weren’t able to pull back into the game.

Third period

The Blues opened and closed the final frame with goals. Jordan Kyrou scored after receiving a pass from behind the net (this time actually from Blues player Robert Thomas), and then skating across the crease while outwaiting Markstrom to gain an empty net to shoot at.

Then with just one minute remaining in the game, Ryan O’Reilly scored a power play marker. He didn’t get his whole stick blade on the puck, and as the puck flipped its way toward the net, it was tipped by Elias Lindholm‘s stick on an effort to save. Unfortunately the tip ended up putting it above Markstrom’s glove and into the net.

The Flames lose 5–1 in St. Louis despite play a fairly good game on the second half of a road back-to-back. The score made it look worse than reality. The Flames were just missing the execution they had the past two games, while the Blues made the most of their opportunities.

The charts from below show that the Flames actually were quite good given they were playing their third game in four nights—the finish just wasn’t there. Onto the next one.