5 Things - Flames @ Sabres

1. Up To Buffalo

The Grateful Dead said it best.

Just keep truckin’ on.

And for the Flames, tonight’s contest is another opportunity to take a step forward as they continue a five-game road trip in western New York.

Calgary earned a point in a 3-2 shootout setback in Washington, a game that saw the Flames fire 40 shots on target and win 61% of the faceoffs.

Goaltending was again a point of discussion as the team practiced in Buffalo Wednesday, with Head Coach once again giving a vote of confidence to his puck-stopping tandem.

“(Marky)’s an elite goaltender and he gives you a chance to win and that’s what you want out of your guys, no different than Dan (Vladar) will be when he gets himself into the net,” Huska commented. “We believe in both of our guys and we know they’re more than capable of not just helping us win, but they’re capable of stealing games.”

Adam Ruzicka and Dillon Dube each counted their first goals of the season against the Capitals, each recording multi-point efforts in the loss while also making things happen on the Flames’ second powerplay unit.

Ruzicka has moved from Calgary’s fourth line to the top six since the season began last week, a move that offers a chance for the young forward to bring more to the table offensively.

Huska is eager to see Ruzicka take another step after he posted 20 points in 44 games last season, with an eye on seeing the 6-foot-4 winger impact games on a more regular basis.

“He’s got to challenge himself a lot of times to make sure he’s consistent,” Huska noted recently, “because the size that he has, and the way he can protect the puck, he can do a lot of things really well.”

Defenceman Noah Hanifin has emerged as one of the Flames’ offensive leaders to begin the new campaign. He leads the team with four assists - and also sits tied among Calgary’s points leaders - after collecting a pair of primary helpers Monday night.

In fact, the offence has been spread around through the first three games: the Flames’ nine goals have come off the sticks of eight different players, with forward Andrew Mangiapane leading the way thanks to his pair of tallies on opening night.

KeyBank Center has proven to be a happy hunting ground in recent years; Calgary has won in each of its last five visits to Buffalo dating back to March of 2018 including a 7-2 triumph this past February.

We don’t have much longer to wait to see if the Flames can extend that run to an even half-dozen games, and earn their first win of the road trip in the process.

Update: Dan Vladar will make his first start of the season tonight, Head Coach Ryan Huska confirms.

2. Know Your Enemy

The Sabres scored their first win of the young season two nights ago, dispatching the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 in overtime.

Forward Dylan Cozens scored the decider, helping Buffalo improve its record to 1-2-0.

“Those are the type of games we need to win,” Cozens told reporters following the contest. “Low-scoring, gritty games and games where we just find a way.”

Two of the team’s first three games have been decided by one goal, a scenario in which the Sabres went 16-7-7 in 2022-23.

Head Coach Don Granato heralded the effort of his defence corps after the group limited the Lightning to 25 shots on goal.

Erik (Johnson) was good, (Connor) Clifton was good, they were all good last night in closing talented players out, quicker than not.” Granato reflected Wednesday.

“(Rasmus) Dahlin was an absolute beast defensively. Everybody knows Dahlin: offence, offence, offence.

“You watch him eliminate people last night, and talented people, it’s impressive.”

Dahlin is a key contributor in the Sabres lineup now, but he’s set to be a huge part of Buffalo’s future after agreeing to an eight-year contract extension earlier this month worth $11 million per year.

The former No. 1 pick posted the third-highest point total by a Sabres defenceman in franchise history in 2022-23, posting 15 goals and 73 points.

It’s his play in his own end, though, that will go a long way in improving a Buffalo defence that surrendered the seventh-most goals in the NHL (297) a season ago.

3. Fast Facts

2022-23 Season Series:

The Flames and Sabres split their two games a season ago with the road team winning on both occasions. Buffalo scored a 6-3 win at the ‘Dome on Oct. 20, with Calgary returning the favour later in the season, winning the return matchup 7-2 on Feb. 11. Dube was the Flames’ top scorer on that night with a goal and three assists, while Jacob Markstrom turned aside 21 shots to earn the win in goal.

Did You Know?

Flames defenceman Dennis Gilbert grew up in Buffalo, N.Y. and calls the city home. He scored his first goal as a Flame in Calgary’s last visit to KeyBank Center Feb. 11.

4. Road Trip Roster

Here’s how the Flames lineup looked in Monday’s contest versus the Capitals (updated lines to come following morning skate):

Forwards

Jonathan Huberdeau - Elias Lindholm - Andrew Mangiapane
Adam Ruzicka - Nazem Kadri - Dillon Dube
Blake Coleman - Mikael Backlund - Matt Coronato
A.J. Greer - Yegor Sharangovich - Walker Duehr

Dryden Hunt

Defence

Noah Hanifin - Rasmus Andersson
Nikita Zadorov - MacKenzie Weegar
Dennis Gilbert - Chris Tanev

Jordan Oesterle

Goaltenders

Jacob Markstrom
Dan Vladar

5. Players to Watch

Flames - Adam Ruzicka

Fresh off his most productive outing of the season, Ruzicka has earned our attention ahead of tonight’s contest.

The 24-year-old scored his first goal of the season in Monday’s first period, adding an assist on Calgary’s second marker, bringing his point total to three through as many games to start the campaign.

Last season, Ruzicka put up five multi-point games but only one (Nov. 19 at Florida) took place away from home.

He has yet to face the Sabres in his NHL career.

Sabres - Zach Benson

The 13th-overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, Benson earned his first two career points (both assists) this past Saturday on Long Island.

He’s earned in and around 15 minutes of ice time in each of his first three games as a Sabre, including 1:34 of powerplay time in Tuesday’s win over the Lightning.

The 18-year-old finished third in WHL scoring a season ago with 98 points (36G, 62A) to go along with a +68 rating that was best among the junior circuit’s forwards; he helped Winnipeg reach the WHL final this past spring.