'We Were Buzzing'

COLUMBUS – As much as the role has changed over the years, rarely does a ‘fourth’ line give you this much.

“They have an identity to them,” Head Coach Ryan Huska said of the Flames’ fourth unit, led at centre by Yegor Sharangovich. “All three of them, they're bigger bodies, they all skate well, and I think they have a really good idea of how they have to play to have success. 

“Since we've put that line together, you can make an argument for that being our most effective line, for sure.”

If there was ever a time to rag on these labels – to laugh in the face of that frivolous, fourth-line moniker – now would be it. Here, the Flames’ mixture of speed, size and silk is living proof that the order they hop over the boards is nothing more than a silly disposition.

Rather, it’s how they maximize the opportunity they’re given and help the team win games.

In the end, nothing else matters.

“I think it was really a good game for us,” Sharangovich said of Thursday’s victory over the Sabres. “We had a lot of chances to score goals. … I think we played really hard on the puck and we won the battles in the offensive zone and (created) some turnovers.”

Sharangovich – who arrived in Calgary in a swap for Tyler Toffoli back in June – picked up his first point as a Flame last night. It was his protection abilities that maintained possession and set up a Noah Hanifin point shot. When that failed, it was his hockey IQ, his read his play on that picked off an Erik Johnson clearing attempt, before skating into the quiet ice and mailing a beautiful pass to Walker Duehr on the far side. 

In what became a 4-3 Flames victory, the Sharangovich unit put together a 62.5% possession rate, while going 7-5 on scoring chances, and recording six of the Flames’ 10 looks from the interior.

“I feel, every game, better and better,” said Sharangovich, who flashed a smile when reminded his assist last night was his first point in Flames colours. “I'm playing more with the puck and am taking more shots.

“It's fun to play with those two guys. We were buzzing last game and we need to play the same way tonight.”

We often praise fourth lines for their ability to create like this and force a megastar like Tage Thompson to play defence even once in a game.

But this wasn’t a one-off.

The Sharangovich, Duehr and A.J. Greer trio has been among the Flames’ best on the road trip. It’s their forecheck, their ferocious puck pursuit that’s putting opponents on their heels. They’re causing havoc, creating offence and – perhaps most importantly – setting the table for the next in line to go out and do the same.

While many wouldn’t have pegged a former 24-goal scorer like Sharangovich to fill a role like this, we really shouldn’t be surprised. When you evaluate his best assets – intelligence, defensive acumen, puck-on-a-string-ability – he has all the tools of a renaissance man.

That it’s working this well, so early?

Well, that has everyone’s attention now – and it’s given the Flames all sorts of options at forward.

“Shar, we kind of identified him more as a winger,” Huska said, noting that No. 17 didn’t play centre at all during his five years with the Devils, but did for two years in the American League. “We'll keep working with him on his faceoffs and stuff like that. But I do feel as we get going, those guys will be interchangeable, at times. When you need someone in a key moment of a game to make sure a puck's out, those are some of the guys that are showing they can do that. They've been really good for us.

“Shar, because of the way the other two guys are – very straight-line, very direct – he's finding a lot of loose pucks now and is putting himself in positions where he can score.

“I look a lot of time at, are you getting shots, are you getting chances? If you are, you're around the puck and you're doing something right. As he worked through exhibition, he has steadily gotten more and more involved in the play by being around the puck and using his speed, his size. And when you do that, his offensive ability will come through and it has lately.

“They’ve got to stay with what they’ve done over the last few games and continue to do that for us. We need a line that's going to set some pace and some energy for us, so we'll to those guys to do that tonight.”

With Sharangovich playing as well as he has lately, the coach agreed there’s a “temptation” to move him up in the lineup and give him an even bigger opportunity, offensively.

But with the fourth line humming along, there’s no reason to break them up now.

He’ll look to get Sharangovich more involved in other ways.

“We'll try to put Shar in a few more spots along the way,” Huska said. “Whether that be more powerplay time to try and help him get over that next hurdle, if you will.

“That’s something we’ll look to do.”