Johnny Gaudreau scored his first objective of the pre-season and added an help Friday to steer the Calgary Flames to a 4-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks.
Matthew Tkachuk additionally had a objective and an help in Calgary’s first pre-season victory. Mikael Backlund and Brett Ritchie, into an empty internet, additionally scored. The Flames began the pre-season 0-2-1.
Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko, left, blocks the online as Calgary Flames’ Matthew Tkachuk appears to be like to deflect the puck throughout first interval NHL preseason hockey motion in Calgary, Friday, Oct. 1, 2021.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
Jonah Gadjovich scored the lone objective for the Canucks, who dropped to 1-2-0.
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Flames goaltender Jacob Markstrom bought his first pre-season begin and turned apart 14 of 15 pictures over two intervals. Dustin Wolf made seven saves within the third.
Vancouver’s Thatcher Demko went the gap in his first pre-season look and stopped 27 pictures.
Calgary’s offence generated way more scoring probabilities than it did in three earlier video games.
Gaudreau took benefit of a late line-up change which dropped Blake Coleman from the sport roster. The emptiness resulted in Gaudreau shifting to a line alongside Elias Lindholm and Tkachuk.
Gaudreau scored the sport’s first objective at 15:18 finishing a slick tic-tac-toe cross-ice passing sequence with Lindholm and Tkachuk. Gaudreau capped it off neatly by firing a shot underneath the cross bar as Demko lunged throughout the crease.
Calgary led 2-0 at 3:30 of the second interval on Backlund’s second pre-season objective.
The sequence started with a heavy hit by Flames defenceman Nikita Zadorov who lowered the shoulder on Jason Dickinson as he tried to skate the puck out of the Canucks’ finish.
Whereas Luke Schenn and Zack MacEwen instantly got here to over to defend Dickenson, play continued and Backlund made the many of the open ice by getting the unfastened puck and firing a shot previous Demko.
Gadjovich’s deflection two minutes later reduce the lead in half, however Tkachuk restored the two-goal cushion 6:54 into the third. He neatly deflected Connor Mackey’s centering move over Demko’s shoulder. Gaudreau had the second help.
Simply earlier than Tkachuk’s objective, he despatched Gaudreau in alone solely to be denied by Demko on one other scoring likelihood for the veteran left-winger, who’s coming into the ultimate season of his six-year contract.
© 2021 The Canadian Press
