Practice Notebook - 18.12.24

The Flames held an optional practice Wednesday morning at the Scotiabank Saddledome, with a visit from the Ottawa Senators on tap for Thursday evening at 7 p.m. MT. GET TICKETS

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Small Group Sessions

A total of 13 skaters, along with netminders Dan Vladar and Dustin Wolf, took the ice at the 'Dome for a quick series of drills Wednesday.

Notable participants among the group of nine forwards and four defencemen included Matt Coronato, Yegor Sharangovich and Connor Zary.

Andrei Kuzmenko - sidelined day-to-day with a lower body injury - took part in the on-ice session as well.

Back Stopping

Dan Vladar backed up Dustin Wolf in Tuesday’s overtime setback to the Bruins after being held out of the lineup Saturday against Florida with a lower-body injury.

The Czech puck-stopper was all smiles, though, when he held court with the media following Wednesday’s practice.

“I feel great,” he said. “Last couple of games before the break, so everybody’s all in.

“Me, personally, I feel really good, and I feel lots of energy from the group as well.”

And while he refrained from diving into specifics on his ailment, Vladar noted the best cure was a bit of R&R.

“We spoke to the trainers,” he recalled. “And their idea was just for me to take those two days off, and then get back training on ice, which we did.

“I feel really good.”

Best Buds

Jakob Pelletier and Connor Zary were reunited on Tuesday night, skating together on a line with Yegor Sharangovich against Boston.

Wednesday at practice, the duo were their usual jovial selves - especially Pelletier, who has a goal and two assists in the half-dozen games he’s played since returning from the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers.

For him, playing with Zary serves as an extra endorphin boost, and Pelletier hopes their renewed partnership is the start of something special.

“He’s a smart player, he loves to play with the puck,” said Pelletier. “The more we play together, the more the chemistry is going to come, too, but I think we kinda showed (flashes) of that already.”

The two young NHLers were selected in concurrent first rounds in the 2019 and 2020 NHL Drafts and since becoming a Flame, Pelletier considers Zary his closest confidant.

“He’s been my best friend since I first joined this organization,” Pelletier recalled. “We lived together in Stockton, we lived together our first year here. You know, we kinda went through everything together, to be honest.

“I think it’s gonna help us, the chemistry we have off the ice, it’s going to help on the ice as well.”