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3 major takeaways from Calgary Flames' 5-4 OT win in preseason game vs Seattle Kraken
The Calgary Flames remained undefeated in exhibition play, earning a 5-4 victory over the visiting Seattle Kraken on Monday night at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta.
Nazem Kadri scored the winning goal 41 seconds into the extra session, successfully redirecting a pass from Andrei Kuzmenko past goaltender Joey Daccord.
Eeli Tolvanen opened the scoring for the Kraken, while Brayden Pachal responded for the Flames to knot the score.
Blake Coleman (PPG) fired a wrist shot past Daccord minutes later to give the Flames the advantage, though both teams entered the 1st intermission tied at 2-2 thanks to Ville Ottavainen's goal with 15 seconds remaining.
Calgary retook the lead on a shorthanded tally from Samuel Honzek, who drove to the net and deked Daccord before beating him blocker side.
Early in the third period, Shane Wright tied things up again for the Kraken on the power play as he buried a rebound past goaltender Dan Vladar.
What are the three biggest takeaways from Monday's victory over the visiting Kraken?
Mikael Backlund departed with an undisclosed injury
As if there weren't already enough injuries to key players throughout the NHL in exhibition play, it looks as though Flames captain Mikael Backlund could be added to that growing list.
He didn't play during the third period and Flames head coach Ryan Huska had no immediate update on his condition in his postgame remarks.
"Nothing on Backlund," he answered when asked for a status report.
Backlund, the longest-serving current member of the Flames, was named captain prior to last season. He appeared in all 82 regular season games, scoring 15 goals with 24 assists.
The prospect of being forced to begin the regular season without their captain would be a significant setback for the Flames, who are attempting to compete for a postseason berth after failing to qualify in each of the last two campaigns.
Goaltender Dan Vladar's performance was notable
Vladar, who is the de facto starting goaltender for Calgary following the offseason trade of Jacob Markstrom, made several key saves against the Kraken, including a first-period breakaway attempt from Oliver Bjorkstrand.
His finest stop came during the second period, as he robbed Wright's rebound attempt at the side of the net:
Vladar finished the night with 30 saves on 33 shots.
Samuel Honzek is doing everything possible to earn a roster post
Selected with the 16th overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, Honzek is making a strong case to be included on the final Flames roster that hits the ice for their regular season opener later in October.
His performance against the Kraken stood out to coach Ryan Huska, who praised what the 19-year-old Slovakian native has accomplished so far.
“I know after last year everybody was talking about, ‘Oh geez where is this Honzek guy and is he going to be a player?’ Well, he is a player," Huska said. "He’s a pretty good player. We’re pretty excited about where he’s at right now.”
The Flames have two games remaining on their exhibition schedule, a home-and-home series against the Winnipeg Jets that begins on Wednesday night at Canada Life Centre.
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