HOW TO 'PLAY FAST'

What does it mean to 'play fast,' anyway?
The term is used ad nauseum, but is often mischaracterized.
No, we're not talking about the powerful, straight-line speed that Johnny Gaudreau, Andrew Mangiapane and others have made famous with their crafty, neutral-zone slaloms.
That helps.
But it's actually more of a mindset - to read and react, support your teammates, and make the puck work for you.

"A lot of people think playing fast means skating fast, but a lot of the time it's puck-moving that helps you to play quick," said captain Mark Giordano. "It's definitely a mindset, that you're playing to play quick and move the puck quick, especially as defencemen. But the forwards, too, being available for passes and chip-ins.
"It all plays into it."
Under Head Coach Darryl Sutter, quickness is a priority.
And if the first two games under the new boss are any indication, that fresh mentality already paid dividends, with speed in many forms leading to almost all of their offence in a pair of victories over the Montreal Canadiens.
Whether it's attacking on the forecheck, like Sean Monahan and Brett Ritchie did, leading to No. 23's 200th career-tally, or how Mangiapane chased down a loose puck, winning a 50/50 puck battle, and fed Mikael Backlund for a critical insurance marker on Saturday, this is what Sutter Hockey is all about.
"It's about moving the puck fast, getting into position fast, receiving it and making the next play," the skipper said, using those two examples to illustrate his point.
Even the Backlund goal, there was no magic to the breakout. Milan Lucic got possession and moved the puck north with a swift aerial feed. Anticipating that, Mangiapane got himself into position, tracked down the pop fly and put the Habs on their heels.
From there, it was all effort.
"The top teams in the league play with that format in place," Sutter said. "So, that's a good lesson there.
"I think with the skill-set of this group, especially with our defence being able to skate and move pucks, it makes that (area of the game) important.
"It's all got to be cohesive. It's not just about skating fast - you have to be in the right position to make that next play."

The same applies defensively.
The Habs were absolutely smothered on Thursday and Saturday, completely neutering an arsenal that has four players with 10 or more goals, already.
The Flames limited their time and space through the neutral zone, forcing them to dump the puck in almost every time. But the locals were one step better, keeping a tight gap and never letting the Montreal forecheckers penetrate the zone. Calgary's blueliners were then able to track back, pick up the biscuit and make a smart play out of the zone to start the counter-attack.
That sort of transition play requires all five players to be on the same page - but so far, so good, as the Flames adjust to this new way of
executing their system.
That's what it means to 'play fast.'
It will be a different challenge tonight, with two of the NHL's best in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl leading the charge on the other side.
McDavid, in particular, can be a handful with his impossible speed off the rush. But if the Flames stay true to the system and dictate the play on their terms, like they have in the first two under the new skipper, McDavid et all could spend the majority of the night defending.
That's the goal, anyway.
Sutter demands it.
"With Darryl, there are no days off here," said Josh Leivo, who had a two-goal effort last Thursday. "We knew that when he was coming in. There are no passengers on this team.
"He demands a lot of intensity, a lot of work ethic. ... He doesn't want you making a lot of mistakes, so you keep it simple. I understood that playing in Toronto with (Randy Carlyle) and (Mike Babcock), too. I play my game that way, anyway, and it's been good so far.
"But it's only been two games so far and we've got to keep it going."