When the Flames acquired Kevin Bahl in the summer, little was known. Most saw him coming in and having an impact similar to Nikita Zadorov, given the two share a similar size. His metrics suggested he would be a solid defensive defenceman, but no one was sure where he would fit. We didn’t get to see much of Bahl in training camp as he was dealing with a lower-body injury. However, he joined training camp next to Rasmus Andersson and the two have stuck together for the first five games. And they’ve been real solid.
The biggest storyline is how the game has gone in the Flames favour with them on the ice. Bahl-Andersson has been the hidden gem in the Flames 4-0-1 start. The Flames have outscored opponents 7-1 with them on the ice at 5v5. Compare that to all other defenders on the team, and it’s been pretty even results so far.
Of defenceman who have played more than 50 mins together at 5v5, Bahl-Andersson rank as the fourth best in terms of Goals For. Only Philip Broberg – Justin Faulk, Ryan McDonagh – Erik Cernak, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Jake McCabe haven’t been scored on yet.
Here are their 5v5 numbers courtesy of NaturalStatTrick:
| TOI | CF% | xGF% | SCF% | HDCF% | PDO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 75:09 | 44.33 | 53.50 | 51.85 | 59.39 | 1.169 |
Riding a 1.169 PDO, you know these results aren’t going to last. But so far, everything has been working with this pairing. If they can keep controlling the high-danger chances (13-9 in favour of Calgary with this pairing on the ice) they’ll be a comfortable support on the backend while the Flames attempt to figure out the other two pairings.
Video highlights
Aside from their underlying numbers, the two have also put up great point totals. Andersson has 2 goals and 6 points thru 5 games, while Bahl has a pair of assists.
Here are both of Andersson’s goals to start the 2024-25 campaign. In both clips, Andersson has the confidence to take risks in the offensive zone as Bahl hangs back and patrols the blueline:
