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Lessons Learned For Calgary Flames In Loss To Chicago Blackhawks

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Calgary Flames vs. Chicago Blackhawks November 20th 2014

Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports

Unfortunately for the Calgary Flames, their three-game winning streak came to an end on Thursday night following a 4-3 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. Despite gaining no points in the standings, the Flames sure gained some experience and learned some lessons that they can apply throughout the rest of the season.  

Part of what makes the Blackhawks so good is their experience. They have the Stanley Cups and they’ve played in all sorts of situations. For a young Flames team, experience is definitely not a strong point. With multiple injuries into Calgary’s lineup, minor league call-ups have been made, adding to the already youthful team. There are a few lessons for guys like Johnny Gaudreau, Josh Jooris and Markus Granlund to take out of Thursday’s game.

Starting the game out on the right foot is very important, and it’s something that really applies to the whole team. The game only gets harder if you have to play from behind most of the night, something the Flames were doing against the Blackhawks. At one early point in the game, Calgary was being outshot 10-2, and you aren’t going to win very many games like that, obviously. The Flames continued to show their resiliency, eventually ending the game with 27 shots on goal to Chicago’s 22. While it’s impressive that the Flames battled back as hard as they did, if they played their first five minutes like the last five, we would probably be talking about Calgary’s four game win-streak. You learn your lessons and move on; it’s how hockey works, especially when you are just breaking into the league as a young player.

There were some bright spots for the Flames: Dennis Wideman scored yet again as Calgary’s defensemen continue to produce offensively. There were six power-play opportunities for the Flames, a byproduct of working hard and keeping your feet moving. Calgary is known as a hard working team, and they will have to live up to that reputation every night if they want to win.

When you have a young team, you are going to go through growing pains; the 4-3 loss against the Blackhawks was just one of them. You are going to lose some close games in which you had an opportunity to win, but you have to learn and move on. Although Calgary beat Chicago earlier this season, they certainly proved they are a changed team by keeping pace with the elite Blackhawks for most of the night. The young players on the Flames‘ roster will continue to learn these little things throughout 2014-15 NHL season.

Shaun Lavery is a Calgary Flames writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter, or add him to your network on Google. 

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