The Calgary Flames travelled north to Edmonton on Saturday night for a preseason edition of the Battle of Alberta, falling 4-1 to the Oilers. Calgary found itself playing from behind early, [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/calgary-flames/latest-news/zayne-parekh-turning-heads-early-in-flames-preseason] with Edmonton opening the scoring late in the first period. At 16:46, Connor McDavid created a chance in front of the Flames net on the power play, finding Zach Hyman for a redirect past Dustin Wolf to give the Oilers a 1-0 lead. Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/2a3d310c-b27d-49f6-9d1b-bec6ba84c008.jpeg] Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images Edmonton extended its advantage early in the second. At 7:55, McDavid finished off a backdoor setup from Leon Draisaitl with a one-timer to make it 2-0. The Oilers added another later in the period when Kasperi Kapanen drove the puck deep before finding Ryan Shea at the point. Shea stepped into the pass and fired a shot past Wolf to make it 3-0. The Flames finally broke through at 9:06. Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/c7f43a0b-ca1b-4665-87dd-e3218b1969ff.jpeg] Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images After some crisp puck movement, Matvei Gridin found Matt Coronato in front, and Coronato made no mistake with the net wide open [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/calgary-flames/latest-news/the-fans-have-more-passion-flames-simon-nemec-embraces-canadian-hockey-culture] to cut Edmonton’s lead to 3-1. The response from Edmonton came quickly. Just over a minute later, at 10:52, Kapanen broke away during 4-on-4 play after getting behind Jake Middleton. He drove toward the net and slipped the puck past a sprawling Wolf to restore Edmonton’s three-goal advantage. The Oilers held on from there to take the 4-1 preseason win. THREE TAKEAWAYS 1. Gridin continues to make an impression Matvei Gridin continues to show why he’s one of the intriguing young players to watch this preseason. His puck movement stood out again against Edmonton, and his assist on Coronato’s goal gave him three assists through three preseason games. 2. Power play showing some promising signs The Flames’ power play generated chances and sustained zone time, with the puck moving around the offensive zone with more purpose. Calgary was able to create looks around the net and generate shots, an encouraging sign even with the final result. 3. Chances were there, but goals were hard to find The Flames generated opportunities and got pucks toward the net, but finishing remained an issue against Edmonton. Creating offence will be an important part of Calgary’s season, and while the four goals weren’t there Saturday, the ability to generate shots and chances is at least a starting point.
