1. Continue The Climb
One game left in 2025 for the Flames.
And what better way to close out the calendar year than with a 41st victory since Jan. 1?
Not to mention, returning to the .500 mark in the process!
That’s the goal tonight, as Calgary and Philadelphia tie a bow on 2025 at the Scotiabank Saddledome (TICKETS), as the Flames go in search of a fifth consecutive home win.
December has brought with it many smiles, and an 8-4-0 record for the locals, and one duo in particular has had a lot to say about the team’s recent run of form
Captain Mikael Backlund’s five goals in December lead the club – and he’s tied with Nazem Kadri in December points with 10 – but it’s his partnership with Blake Coleman that has really stood out, at both ends of the rink.
Backlund is +10 this month, while Coleman’s +8 pairs nicely in concert with his eight points since the end of November.
But for the captain, the team’s turnaround after a rough month of October has brought about a sense of personal freedom, at least according to his Head Coach.
“He’s on pace for one of his better years ever, the way he’s playing the game. I just think since the first month of the year, he felt a lot of pressure when the team wasn’t having results,” Ryan Huska said of his captain Monday evening, shortly after the Flames knocked off the Bruins 2-1 at the ‘Dome. “He wanted to help everybody find a way to make this better, and it took away from his game a little bit.
“I think once he got himself focused on ‘If I take care of my own game, everybody else is going to follow suit,’ and I think he got himself reset a little bit after the first month.”
Coleman has seen his fair share of Backlund brilliance, too, usually on his wing.
“He’s obviously well-documented for his defensive game, but he’s consistently put up 40, 50 points a year in his career and not showing any signs of slowing down at the young, ripe age of 36,” the Texan said Monday. “For me, it’s his smarts, the way he sees the game. I think he sees the ice really well, he knows where the puck’s going before he gets it.
“Fortunately, I’ve been able to play with him for a long time, it’s one of those things where we pretty much know where each other is going to be.”
Together, the pair are helping will the Flames back into the thick of things in that logjam otherwise known as the Western Conference standings. Only seven points separate the final Wild Card berth from the bottom of the Conference, and Calgary sits right in the middle of that pack, three points behind eighth-place San Jose.
Coleman, too, has had a whale of a past six weeks, scoring clutch goals, helping kill penalties and delivering solid checks at every turn.
Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
And Coleman, the two-time Stanley Cup champ, is more than happy to help drive the bus.
“When you look at probably the last month and a half, you have to put him up there as our top player every night,” said Huska of Coleman. “The way he approaches games, the way he’s competitive right now, I think he’s almost willing people around him to be better.
“He’s been really good for us.”
