'Take Advantage Of It'

SAINT PAUL - Dennis Gilbert hadn’t seen the picture at the top of this article yet.

“Oh, wow," said Gilbert with a grin when shown it following Tuesday morning’s pregame skate ahead of a tilt with the Wild. “That’s definitely someone who looks pretty excited.”

And for good reason.

The rugged rearguard scored an absolute gem in Sunday’s 4-3 win over the Flyers at the Scotiabank Saddledome, rifling home a pass from Jonathan Huberdeau for his first of the season.

The ensuing celly was just as pretty.

“I mean, it doesn’t go in crazy often for me,” he said of his three career tallies in 74 NHL games. “So you have to take advantage of it when it does.”

Along with bringing the C of Red to their feet, it got the butts out of the seats at his parent’s New Year’s Eve party back at home in Buffalo.

“It was cool, my family was all together for the New Year's so they were watching the game,” he said. “Gave them something to cheer for, I guess.”

Boy, did he ever - click below to watch.

Gilbert – signed as a free agent in the summer of 2022 - has already set highs for games played in a season (26), and points with seven, building on the 23 games he played last year when he lit the lamp once and added three helpers.

It was his second two-point night of the campaign having collected a pair of assists on Dec. 11 against Colorado.

The Flames blueliners, of course, have been active in scoring this season, Gilbert just the latest to tally on the scoresheet.

And a goal such as the one he scored can definitely give a guy a shot in the arm and the self-assurance to perhaps look to the net more often.

“Maybe a bit more confidence to jump up a little more when it’s safe and the time’s right in the game and everything, and it’s situationally OK,” he agreed. “But it’s not gonna change a lot for what I do.”

“Not gonna say it’s like a one-off,” he added with a smile. “But that’s not something I’m focused on a lot.”

What he’s focused on is playing a steady defensive game, all about substance and fundamentals.

“Yep, exactly,” said Gilbert. “It’s being really good definsively, using my feet to close guys off and do good in my own zone and … just getting pucks to the forwards and making sure they’re in a good spot to create.”

Head coach Ryan Huska said the key to Gilbert’s success so far this year is no secret.

“He's kept his game simple and that's what we need out of him,” explained the bench boss. “He's one of our more physical players, so he has to have that part of his game to be really effective for us.

“So, he has to be physical - but when you ask guys, as defencemen, to make that first pass, Dennis takes it to heart. He's really tried to do a good job of moving the puck quickly while keeping his game simple, and that's really what's allowed him to have success over the last little while.”

Gilbert said skating alongside Calgary’s excellent D Corps – including recent playing time with Rasmus Andersson – has been a big key to his development.

“I’ve learned a lot from these guys,” said Gilbert. “Especially our big four – they match up with any big four in the NHL, as far as I’m concerned.”

Tonight they face a stiff test against a Wild team that has beat them twice this season – most recently a 3-2 shootout win Dec. 14 at the Xcel Energy Center.

“They definitely try to play quick, like we do,” said Gilbert. “They’re opportunisitic. It seems like at home they have a bit more jump and pace in their game and they’re definitely a team that starts really well so the start tonight is gonna be a big focus for us and super important and build off that.”