The Calgary Flames currently sit 28th out of 32 teams in the NHL in Goals For. Their inability to create offence has been a constant pain point all season long. The Calgary Flames are getting solid goaltending from their goalies Dustin Wolf and Daniel Vladar, but failing to provide any run support. Calgary has managed to score more than three goals in regulation in just five of their first 36 games. This inability to score goals means that Calgary has to battle and grind out any wins and it’s costing them points.
It’s not necessarily shocking that Calgary isn’t one of the top-scoring teams in the league. They are in year two of a rebuild and don’t have any true elite offensive players. Despite this fact, their current inability to score is below where they should be. One of the biggest causes of the Flames lack of offence is poor individual performances. In this article we’ll look at three lineup changes Calgary can make to help create more offence.
Sharangovich Moves To The Safety Spot To Focus on Offence
Yegor Sharangovich is coming off a career year that saw him score 31 goals and 59 points. He was rewarded for this breakout season with a contract extension from Calgary worth $5.75 million over the next 5 seasons. This season, however, has been a big disappointment. Sharangovich has just 10 points in 30 games. He’s failed to look dangerous and seems to be completely lacking confidence. Enter Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman.
Coleman and Backlund have become the Calgary Flames most consistent duo over the past 3 seasons. The two forwards have also become something of a fix-it line for young players or struggling players. Whether it was a young Matthew Tkachuk or Andrew Mangiapane, the Flames often put players who need support alongside the consistent duo. Sharangovich is struggling with confidence, putting him beside Coleman and Backlund should free him up to focus on his offensive game.
Pairing Coronato and Zary
Matthew Coronato and Connor Zary have started to become two of Calgary’s best forwards this season. Zary is building off his rookie season. He’s moved to centre and has been one of Calgary’s best offensive creators all season. Coronato has improved his skating and 200-foot game allowing him to create space for his great shot. These two players are starting to look like players that Calgary can start to build around for the future. Combining Coronato’s shot alongside someone like Zary who is the Flames best player at creating offence on his own could boost Calgary’s scoring. Additionally, pairing these two together to start building chemistry should be a priority for the Flames in year two of a rebuild.
There will be many who don’t want to see Coronato change lines. He’s currently on a line with Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman and is playing the best hockey of his career. However, Coronato has shown recently that he doesn’t need to play beside Backlund and Coleman to help his game. He’s been a driver for this line and he has the speed and defensive responsibility to move him into a top-six role.
Kuzmenko To Inject Offence
It’s not necessarily a surprise to see that Andrei Kuzmenko‘s time in Calgary has mirrored his time in Vancouver. He got off to a great start to his time in Calgary. Recording 25 points in 29 games last season. However, Kuzmenko has struggled and become a consistent healthy scratch this year. Kuzmenko is a player who possesses elite offensive ability but struggles with consistency. He can at times be a liability defensively which makes him an easy target to take out of the lineup. The problem for Calgary is that they just can’t score enough, and Kuzmenko could help this if he can get going.
It would be a tough decision to see Kuzmenko come back to the lineup when he’s been outplayed by players like Jakob Pelletier and Walker Duehr. However, it’s not really fair to expect a player who only comes into the lineup once in a while to contribute offensively. If the Flames truly want to create more offence, they need to give arguably their most skilled offensive player more time to gain back his confidence. This lineup change would be controversial, however, it could be the most beneficial change. If Kuzmenko can get hot he would become an asset for general manager ahead of the trade deadline. After a trade, players like Pelletier and Duehr could be recalled.
Flames May Be Forced To Make Change To Create Offence
Calgary is currently trying to manage two outcomes this season. They are trying to build their team into a consistent contender by developing young players, but also find themselves fighting for a playoff spot. If they want to make a true push for the playoffs they will have to consider making changes to create more offence.
Main Photo: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
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