New York. Last night there was a guaranteed squeeze on country bars in Calgary.
The Flames won the first round of the season in the Battle of Alberta against the Edmonton Oilers.
– They are our main competitors, so of course it would be great, top scorer Mikael Backlund told Sportbladet after the 4-3 win.
They’ve always belonged to the hottest NHL derbies, and the battles between Alberta’s neighbors Oilers and Flames, but with both teams so good right now – and they snatched an epic playoff streak last spring – they have an extra sparkle right now.
thus:
Heels on the rooftop in Calgary last night. And so For the Flames got their first round in Edmonton – thanks mainly to their furious first period when they scored four goals and chased new goalkeeper Jack Campbell out of the box.
Then the home team definitely cut a few times midway through the period and were catching up, but Calgary held out in the final.
– Yes, it was a solid effort, even if we could have played better, he says Michael Backlund On the phone from the player bus noisy after that.
– Of course, it is very good to win the “Battle of Alberta”. Oilers are our main competitors.
Score the first goal
And “Mikes” himself was responsible for the first goal of the match. After just 1.13, he got rebound in front of the box and pushed the disc in.
– It was blocked, I think, and then the puck bounced back to me. Great, it’s always good to break the deadlock this season and get over it.
Nazim Qadri also broke the zero and that means all of his heavy new acquisitions already have time to make an impression in a Flames shirt.
“They’re good guys, they’re good hockey players and they got into the group right away,” says Micks.