Sports News and Trade Rumors: Pro Sports Daily

Comment

November 20

Calgary Herald

"The Calgary Flames act like victims of post-traumatic stress disorder every time they see the Chicago Blackhawks. Maybe they can't exorcise the mental picture of four losses last season to Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and the gang of young stars from the Windy City. Or maybe they have yet to emotionally recover from the first-round National Hockey League playoff ouster inflicted last spring by bruising Dustin Byfuglien and friends. Or perhaps their memories are short, and the distress simply dates back to last month when the Flames coughed up a 5-0 lead at the United Center and fell 6-5 to mark the greatest comeback in Blackhawks history. No matter. The Hawks have the Flames number. Big ..."

One Sad Dome blowout

Comment

November 20

Calgary Sun

"Waiting for the locker-room doors to open after the game, time stood still. It must have seemed even longer for the Calgary Flames players as they were addressed by their coaching staff after a brutal 7-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks last night at the Saddledome. "We've just got to play better. Compete harder. That's all it is," winger Eric Nystrom said of the lengthy gap between the final buzzer and the painful media interviews during which they tried to explain an effort that was inexplicable. "It's nothing to do with Xs and Os. That was just a bad effort." Embarrassing was the word thrown out by the Flames captain, and every one of his teammates would have to agree on that one. ..."

Five-goal second period fuels Hawks' rout of Flames

Comment

November 20

Chicago Sun-Times

"The Blackhawks got their six-game road trip off to a rousing start Thursday, crushing the Calgary Flames 7-1 in a game that was all but decided after the second period. The Hawks snapped a 1-1 tie with five unanswered goals in the second in romping to their sixth straight win over Calgary. Kris Versteeg, who sat out the previous game with an upper body injury, scored twice for the Hawks in the second period barrage with Dustin Byfuglien, Andrew Ladd and Patrick Kane also scoring. The Blackhawks got their six-game road trip off to a rousing start Thursday, crushing the Calgary Flames 7-1 in a game that was all but decided after the second period. The Hawks snapped a 1-1 tie with five ..."

Chicago Blackhawks beat Calgary Flames 7-1

Comment

November 20

Chicago Tribune

"On a Thursday night when they scored a season-high seven goals, it was a Cristobal Huet save that got the Blackhawks rolling. The Hawks hammered the Flames 7-1 at the Pengrowth Saddledome to kick off their six-game trip in style. The victory was the Hawks' fifth straight and continued their dominance over Calgary, which they knocked out of the Western Conference quarterfinals last season after sweeping the four-game regular season series. It was also the against the Flames whom the Hawks staged a miracle comeback from a five-goal deficit to win 6-5 in overtime Oct. 12 at the United Center. They didn't return the favor here. Kris Versteeg had two goals and Patrick Kane added a goal and an ..."

Flames mum on 'family spat'

Comment

November 19

Calgary Herald

"Someone heard something. Someone else saw something. Others began to draw conclusions. Then one gentleman — even further removed from the action than the aforementioned parties — decided to give it the blog/twitter treatment. Which made the unsubstantiated incident part of the public record. Sigh. Which meant local media schlubs needed to waddle over to the Westside Recreation Centre on Wednesday morning to investigate. So, in the grim aftermath of Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche, did Calgary Flames skipper Brent Sutter — or did he not — tear a strip off Dion Phaneuf in the coach's office? Big surprise. No one was telling. "Well, to be honest with you guys, what happens in our ..."

'It's no one else's business' -- Sutter

Comment

November 19

Calgary Herald

"Not surprisingly, the Flames didn't offer any insight into any post-game meetings between coaches and players following Tuesday's loss to Colorado. Did Brent Sutter torch Dion Phaneuf? Hard to say. It's not a stretch to think that he would. (The defenceman, after all, was minus-two, with two giveaways.) But, then again, how would we know for sure? Blogging about it is easy. Securing an answer is not. "Well, to be honest with you guys, what happens in our dressing room behind closed doors is our business, whether it's coaches and players, players and players," Phaneuf told reporters on Wednesday morning. "That's all I'm going to say about that. That's the bottom line." Sutter did not veer ..."

Sutter big fan of smart Shanny

Comment

November 19

Calgary Herald

"Brent Sutter played against Brendan Shanahan. And he played with him. And, last season with the New Jersey Devils, Sutter got to coach Shanahan. Now, they're members of the same club again -- the exclusive retired-player club. Shanahan, 40, announced Tuesday that he was leaving the National Hockey League after 21 seasons. "You know, I really enjoyed coaching Shanny," said Sutter, currently bench boss of the Calgary Flames. "Very intelligent player. Knew the game very well. A really good leader. Intelligent in the sense that he could pick things up in games and he knew how to translate it from player to player inside of a dressing room. Very well-spoken guy." Shanahan sounds like a coach. ..."

New York saw me "at my worst," says Fleury

Comment

November 19

Calgary Herald

"Theo Fleury has a message for the New York Rangers organization and Rangers fans: I'm sorry. Fleury spent three seasons with the Rangers (1999-2000 to 2001-02), when his addiction to drugs and alcohol were affecting his play on the ice and his behaviour off it. The former Calgary Flame was in New York to promote his autobiography, Playing with Fire, in which he details the alleged sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of his former junior coach, Graham James. He told the New York Post that he regrets his behaviour while with the Rangers and praised Glen Sather, who took over as the Rangers' GM in the 2000-01 season, for trying to help him deal with his demons."

Flames mum on 'family spat'

Comment

November 19

Calgary Herald

"Someone heard something. Someone else saw something. Others began to draw conclusions. Then one gentleman — even further removed from the action than the aforementioned parties — decided to give it the blog/twitter treatment. Which made the unsubstantiated incident part of the public record. Sigh. Which meant local media schlubs needed to waddle over to the Westside Recreation Centre on Wednesday morning to investigate. So, in the grim aftermath of Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche, did Calgary Flames skipper Brent Sutter — or did he not — tear a strip off Dion Phaneuf in the coach's office? Big surprise. No one was telling. "Well, to be honest with you guys, what happens in our ..."

Flames quiet regarding outburst

Comment

November 19

Calgary Sun

"A shouting match could be heard from the office of head coach Brent Sutter after Tuesday night's loss to Colorado. Good. The Flames may have a 12-5-2 record, but aren't firing on all cylinders. A bit of anger overflowing is proof the coaches won't stand for anything short of expectations. Not that Sutter wanted to delve into what happened Wednesday. "What happens behind closed doors inside a dressing room is between the players and coaches and is no one else's business. That's the way it is," Sutter said after his team's optional practice. "There's always intensity and emotions in games. That's the way hockey is and what it's all about. It's people showing their passion and their caring. ..."

Flames hot streak cooled by Avs

Comment

November 18

Calgary Herald

"Lack of motivation should not have been an issue. Because there was the fresh memory of the recent visit from the Colorado Avalanche. (A contest, well in hand, that turned into a loss Oct. 28 when Wojtek Wolski glided with embarrassing ease through red-clad defenders to deposit the winning goal.) Because there was the opportunity to leapfrog into the Northwest Division's penthouse. A Calgary Flames win would wash away the bad taste from last month's collapse. A Calgary Flames win would land the locals in top spot. Makes sense, right? But the surprisingly stubborn Avs had other ideas. Scoring twice in the dying minutes of the second period, Colorado mucked its way to a 3-2 triumph in ..."

Climb will Av to wait

Comment

November 18

Calgary Sun

"That ascension back to first place in the division is on hold for the time being. It may never happen if the Flames play too many games like they did last night. With a chance to overtake the Colorado Avalanche for top spot in the Northwest standings, the Flames allowed themselves to be lulled to sleep for much of last night's 3-2 loss. First, they had the sleepy eyes through most of the first period, and then went into a short but deadly slumber in the final few minutes of the second period -- immediately after taking a 2-1 lead. "It's been a problem a few times this year. We get a big goal, get the lead, and the next shift they get right back in the game," said Rene Bourque, whose ..."

Avalanche defeats Flames 3-2, stays in first place

Comment

November 18

Denver Post

"Avalanche defenseman Ryan Wilson's nickname is "Sauce," not because of any special love for marinara or the white clam variety, but for some great airborne "saucer" pass he made back in his junior hockey days. Once a nickname is given in hockey, no matter how weird it is, it sticks. Wilson might stick around the Avalanche for good with more games like the one he played Tuesday night in the Avs' 3-2 victory over the Calgary Flames at the Pengrowth Saddledome, a win that kept Colorado in first place in the Northwest Division. Wilson, acquired by the Avs from the Flames in a deal that sent Jordan Leopold here last season, scored his first career goal and made a pretty nice saucer pass to help ..."

Starting Kiprusoff 'made perfect sense'

Comment

November 17

Calgary Herald

"In case you were wondering about the choice of netminder for Saturday's game against the home-ice Maple Leafs, Brent Sutter is here to tell you that the second half of a back-to-back set was an ideal spot for Miikka Kiprusoff. "You manage your schedule and your games very appropriately," started the Flames coach on Monday morning. "I know people were questioning — why was Kipper playing against Toronto? Well, for us it made perfect sense. The fact that we only played two games in six days (Nov. 11-16) . . . and Kipper usually plays pretty good in those back-to-back games. To be quite honest, it was a real simple decision to make. "But as our schedule heats up here, and you're playing every ..."

Glencross returns as a first-liner

Comment

November 17

Calgary Herald

"The conclusion of Curtis Glencross's week-long sentence comes with a silver lining. Or, rather, a first-lining. Because, after serving out his three-game suspension for blindsiding Chris Drury, the Calgary Flames winger makes his return alongside marquee forwards Jarome Iginla and Olli Jokinen. "(Brent Sutter) called me into the office and said, 'You'll play with them guys. And you've got to get back to the things that make you a good player. Just play your gritty style,' " Glencross was saying after Monday morning's practice at the Pengrowth Saddledome. "It was a bit of a confidence-booster to come back and play with those guys. "I had six days to clear my head, to work on a few things in ..."

To Kipper's mates he's always a star

Comment

November 17

Calgary Herald

"Say one thing for Miikka Kiprusoff, he makes things easy for the big brains at the National Hockey League. With last week's spectacular play and spiffy numbers — record of 2-0-1, goals-against average of 0.97, save percentage of .969 — he carried the Calgary Flames to five of a possible six points. On the road yet. Meaning Monday's announcement for player-of-the-week honours was painfully straightforward. Give the nod to Kiprusoff, right? Well, no. The NHL opted for three other chaps — Detroit forward Henrik Zetterberg (nine points in three wins); Atlanta forward Ilya Kovalchuk (eight points in three wins); Buffalo netminder Ryan Miller (1.30 GAA, .953 save percentage, in three wins). But ..."

Top-notch Kipper shut out

Comment

November 17

Calgary Sun

"Credit for a three-game road swing that saw the Calgary Flames collect five of six possible points despite being outshot and generally outplayed belongs squarely on the shoulders, leg pads, blocker and glove of goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff. But when it came to the NHL, Kiprusoff's name was nowhere to be seen among the three stars of the week announced yesterday. Going 3-0-1 last week with wins against the New York Rangers in Calgary, a shutout over the Canadiens in Montreal, a shootout loss to the Sabres in Buffalo and a 5-2 win over the Maple Leafs in Toronto the next night, Kiprusoff's omission allows him the opportunity to feel like so many of the shooters who faced him the last seven ..."

Kiprusoff hides Flames' shortcomings

Comment

November 16

Calgary Herald

"Brent Sutter searched for the words in answer of the question: With so many positive results lately, how do you get the team to play better; to play the way you want them to play? "As players, they have to understand and realize there's a certain way we have to play, need to play and are going to play," began the coach of the Calgary Flames. "I think it's about executing it and realizing there's no easy games. "Every game is a tough game and you have to prepare to do it the right way or you're not going to play well every night. You're not going to win every game because certain things failed you and those are the things I get upset about." And Sutter admitted he was upset following a 5-2 ..."

Bad habits tough to break

Comment

November 16

Calgary Sun

"Brent Sutter paused for a couple of seconds when asked the question. On the heels of his team's 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs Saturday night, the Calgary Flames head coach was asked why his team pulled the same bad stunt against the Leafs and Buffalo Sabres on successive nights. Both times, the Flames scored just over a minute into the game. Both times, they were overrun by the opposition for the rest of the opening period. "Habits," Sutter said. "You see it happening too many times and think, 'Why's it happening?' It's learning how to succeed and win the right way. It's accepting the fact our team has to play a certain way. I think they accept it but, at times, they get away from ..."

In Fleury's Memoir, Rangers Years Are a 'Nightmare'

Comment

November 16

New York Times

"When Theo Fleury was a Ranger, he said, he would stay out all night drinking, doing cocaine, going "below the streets of New York City" to "party with freaks, transvestites, strippers" or to "hang out with homeless guys around a burn barrel" on the West Side piers. He substituted Gatorade or his baby boy's urine for his own in drug tests until, finally, he had to take a break from hockey to enter a substance-abuse program. Much of his time as a Ranger, from 1999 to 2002, he remembers as a "nightmare." On Tuesday, Fleury will appear at a Manhattan bookstore in support of his memoir, "Playing With Fire," which was published last month and is the No. 1 nonfiction book in Canada. The book, ..."

Sarich fighting back from 'blunders'

Comment

November 15

Calgary Herald

"There have been suggestions that Cory Sarich has been struggling as he patrols the Calgary Flames blueline with new partner Jay Bouwmeester. Well? "There's been a few plays I definitely would like back over the course of the last few games," said the 31-year-old, as the club prepared to wrap up this three-game tour of eastern cities. "A couple of rough ones in a row but I've felt like I've done a lot of good things in my game and I'm trying to turn it around. Just the odd one or two big blunders sticking out like a sore thumb that attract a little more attention than I like to have." The most recent moment of humiliation, if that's what you want to call it, was when former teammate Michael ..."

Kipper, Flames ice road trip with win over Leafs

Comment

November 15

Calgary Herald

"If you didn't know better, you'd swear the Calgary Flames were trying to throw a hockey game Saturday night. Goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff wouldn't co-operate, however, so they were forced to take a 5-2 win over the homestanding Toronto Maple Leafs in spite of themselves to finish their three-game National Hockey League road trip in anything but glowing style. The victory made it a highly successful junket, nabbing five of a possible six points, and snapped a nine-year string of losses in the centre of the hockey universe. But it was anything but pretty. After scoring on their first two shots of the game inside two minutes, the Flames went into some kind of crazy funk that saw them stuck in ..."

Flames chase shaky Jonas Gustavsson

Comment

November 15

Toronto Star

"The Monster had a nightmare. It starred Jarome Iginla. And it left the Maple Leafs shell-shocked. The Calgary Flames scored on their first two shots – Iginla leading the way with his first of two on the night – and chased Jonas Gustavsson by the halfway mark of the first period en route to a 5-2 win over the Maple Leafs. "I'm mad when we lose the game, I want to play good and help the team," said Gustavsson. "Sometimes, you have to move on and keep working hard and think about next practice.""

Boyd shows signs of breakout

Comment

November 14

Calgary Herald

"t here have been a few succeed relatively instantly. Bobby Orr, Jarome Iginla, Sam Gagner, Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, Maybe even John Tavares. The sniper and/or big point-getter in junior hockey capitalizing on that skill and using it successfully in the National Hockey League upon graduation. More often than not, however, it is a lengthy process, one which Dustin Boyd continues to go through with the Calgary Flames. A 48-goal, 90-point man for the Moose Jaw Canucks in his fourth and final Western Hockey League season, the third-round draft choice of 2004 is beginning to show signs of breaking out. Feeling more comfortable and playing with more confidence, the ..."

Power outage costs Flames against stingy Sabres

Comment

November 14

Calgary Herald

"Brent Sutter will take the point, but the Calgary Flames coach couldn't help but call out his power play for another lame effort. In a game that often dripped with playoff-style trimmings, featuring two of the hottest goaltenders in the National Hockey League, the Flames failed to capitalize on three straight power plays early in the second period en route to a 2-1 shootout loss to the home standing Sabres. Maybe it had something to do with it being a Friday the 13th or the fact they haven't won in this New York City since March 15 of 1996 but, whatever it was, the Flames went 0-for-4 with the man advantage to run their string to 0-for-10 through the first two games of this three-game ..."

Local fans enjoy chance to see Iginla

Comment

November 14

Buffalo News

"Friday night was why folks pleaded with the NHL to return to its balanced schedule, the one in which every team plays each other. For three seasons — from 2005-06 to 2007-08 — the league tried building local rivalries and created a rotating system in which an Eastern Conference division skipped a division from the West. Among the teams the Buffalo Sabres avoided in 2007-08 were the Calgary Flames. Good for the Sabres, since the Flames went 42-30-10. Bad for Sabres fans because they missed Jarome Iginla, MVP runner-up that season. The balanced schedule returned last year, and Iginla returned to HSBC Arena on Friday. The Flames and their superstar hadn't visited Western New York since ..."

Sabres' Miller is tired of head shots

Comment

November 14

Buffalo News

"Ryan Miller, as a member of the NHL's competition committee, has the ear of some very important people in hockey's hierarchy. He also has an acute feel for his fellow players, knows which topics they want discussed. He says the words aren't reaching the ears. The general managers' meetings this week offered further proof. Miller, who will be in goal for the Buffalo Sabres tonight when they host the Calgary Flames, says players have been demanding action on hits to the head. He said it's been an important agenda item for years. He's seen too many unnecessary injuries and is tired of a culture that allows them to happen. The general managers talked about head shots Wednesday during their ..."

Sabres have tough act to follow after topping Flames

Comment

November 14

Buffalo News

"The Buffalo Sabres talked for two days about making a statement, about showing character. The Calgary Flames are a tough team, they said, but we can be, too. They have a world-class goaltender, but so do we. The Sabres made their statement Friday night. They were a little bit tougher, a little bit better. Ryan Miller edged Miikka Kiprusoff in the matchup of Olympic goalies, and the Sabres stood up to one of the NHL's toughest teams to earn a 2-1 shootout victory in HSBC Arena. "That was probably as hard as I've seen us play," Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. "We talked about it for two days. We're going to get under people. We're going to go through people. We're going to try to be hard on ..."

Slumping power play becomes road worry

Comment

November 13

Calgary Herald

"C onsider these two statistics for the streaking Calgary Flames: No. 2 on the road on the penalty kill and No. 26 on the road on the power-play. Now, seriously, how much longer do you think the winners of four straight will be able to continue this run with a power-play operating at 12 per cent? Especially when the next stop is at Buffalo tonight against one of the stingiest teams in the league. So it was no surprise that the Flames sent some time applying a little spit and polish to the special team during Thursday's pre-departure practice at the Bell Sportsplex. "Our power-play hasn't been great on the road," admitted coach Brent Sutter. "We just don't do enough as far as putting pucks ..."

Scoring secondary

Comment

November 13

Calgary Sun

"The wins are adding up. The goals against are decreasing. Still, all's not perfect for the Flames these days. The team's high-flying offence, which started the season on a tear, has cooled off. "That'll come. I think it's about wins," captain Jarome Iginla said after yesterday's skate in Montreal. "We've made it a real focus to try and get better defensively and I think it's coming. We'll be capable of scoring goals, but the most important thing is winning. "It's about getting that next win, whether you score lots of goals or not." Nobody can complain about victories, even if they're low-scoring, such as Tuesday's 1-0 win over Montreal. Over the last six games, Calgary has only 12 goals. ..."

Iginla scraps fight rumour

Comment

November 13

Calgary Sun

"Calgary Flames captain Jarome Iginla denied having challenged the whole Montreal Canadiens bench during Tuesday night's 1-0 win. The red-hot rumour making the rounds on the Internet, and amongst the Montreal media, is that Iginla told Habs players in the heat of battle during what was at times a contentious game, "Anybody has a problem, see me any time." Former Flames defenceman Joel Bouchard, who was Iginla's roommate in the early stages of their careers, was between the benches during the game and reportedly said on the RDS broadcast Iginla said he'll take on all comers. "No, no, no," Iginla pleaded after yesterday's practice. "I think he misheard that. I think I might have said Grats, ..."

Kiprusoff shrugs off his return to top form

Comment

November 12

Calgary Herald

"Those who have been watching closely will tell you there's something different about Miikka Kiprusoff this season. They'll tell you the red-headed Finnish goaltender is either getting better with age or he's rediscovered his Vezina Trophy-winning form. That he's off to a fast start unlike most seasons, that he's more consistent and that he always seems to be in a happy-go-lucky kind of mood. Try as some veteran followers of the Calgary Flames want to put a finger on his sterling play, particularly during the past three games, there is no new magic. This is the same ol' Kipper except for a new mask he broke in a couple weeks ago. "I feel the same," he smiled Wednesday, when asked if he was ..."

Flames stay hot on the road

Comment

November 12

Calgary Sun

"With the parity of today's NHL, it's supposed to be difficult to win on the road. Tell that to the Calgary Flames. Other than the 2003-04 campaign which saw the Flames go to the Stanley Cup finals, their road record has been between mediocre to awful since the glory days of the late 1980s and early 1990s. This season has been different. Heading into Friday night's game in Buffalo, the Flames have a 5-1-1 mark away from the Saddledome. It's not quite good enough to claim the title of road kings — that goes to the New Jersey Devils with their incredible 8-0 to start the season — but is impressive, nonetheless. People may have grown tired of hearing the words "structure" and "system" when ..."

Kipper's the hottest Flame of all

Comment

November 11

Calgary Herald

"There's no longer any question as to who is the hottest Calgary Flame. "I go with Kipper," said a grinning captain Jarome Iginla, following Tuesday's 1-0 National Hockey League decision over the Montreal Canadiens. "He played sick again. You can just see he's battling in there, having fun . . . the saves, the demeanour. He's enjoying it, our D is playing great in front of him. "They're playing well as a group back there. You can see they're all enjoying it . . . we're all enjoying it." Iggy popped his fifth goal in the past four games as the Flames stretched their winning streak to four, but his surge on the scoresheet pales in comparison to the heroics of goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff on ..."

Sutter thrilled with Flames' play in Montreal

Comment

November 11

Calgary Herald

"After reviewing the game film, and working up a little bit of a sweat tossing around a football Wednesday, coach Brent Sutter is sticking to his first impressions of Tuesday's 1-0 victory over the Canadiens. It was one of the Flames best games of the season, home or away. Frankly, your agent hasn't seen enough games to support that view but, from we've seen, the club definitely was stronger in its own zone. Never mind that they came out like a steamroller and should have put it away in the first 20 minutes, five-on-five they were generally terrific. And that, says Sutter, is because his charges did a bang up job of supporting each other. "We had a real good 10-foot or less support for each ..."

Kipper's the hottest Flame of all

Comment

November 11

Calgary Herald

"There's no longer any question as to who is the hottest Calgary Flame. "I go with Kipper," said a grinning captain Jarome Iginla, following Tuesday's 1-0 National Hockey League decision over the Montreal Canadiens. "He played sick again. You can just see he's battling in there, having fun . . . the saves, the demeanour. He's enjoying it, our D is playing great in front of him. "They're playing well as a group back there. You can see they're all enjoying it . . . we're all enjoying it." Iggy popped his fifth goal in the past four games as the Flames stretched their winning streak to four, but his surge on the scoresheet pales in comparison to the heroics of goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff on ..."

Vintage Kiprusoff in victory

Comment

November 11

Calgary Sun

"The Montreal Canadiens wore vintage sweaters from their 1910-11 NHL season. That was the year in which the legendary Georges Vezina began his career with the storied franchise. But it was Calgary Flames netminder Miikka Kiprusoff doing his best impersonation of the legendary goaltender with a 25-save performance in a 1-0 win over the Canadiens last night at the Bell Centre. "I didn't know that," Flames captain Jarome Iginla said of the Vezina trivia. "But he's sure feeling it, right now. He's been playing absolutely huge for us. You can see he's enjoying it. "We're all enjoying it." Kiprusoff has been outstanding since missing a start a week ago due to illness, and he was perfect in ..."

Flames hold on to edge Habs

Comment

November 11

Montreal Gazette

"Jaroslav Halak and Calgary's Miikka Kiprusoff engaged in an old-fashioned goaltending duel Tuesday night with Kiprusoff and the Flames getting the upper hand. A first-period goal by Jarome Iginla was all the scoring the Flames would need as Kiprusoff made 25 saves for his first shutout of the season and the Flames won, 1-0 It was the third loss in four games for the Canadiens and their third consecutive loss on home ice as they remain mired in 11th place in the Eastern Conference. It was the fourth consecutive win for the Flames, who moved into fourth place in the Western Conference. Kiprusoff made two big saves early in the third period to preserve his shutout. He used his blocker to ward ..."

Miikka Kiprusoff blanks Canadiens

Comment

November 11

Boston Herald

"Miikka Kiprusoff got his first shutout of the season and Jarome Iginla extended his goal-scoring streak to four games, leading the Calgary Flames to a 1-0 victory against the Canadiens last night in Montreal. Kiprusoff made 25 saves and improved to 10-3-1 this season as Calgary won its fourth straight to begin a four-game trip. It was his 31st career shutout. Named the NHL's first star of the week one day earlier, Iginla opened the scoring with his team-leading ninth of the season 14:55 in. Jaroslav Halak stopped 30 shots for Montreal, which has lost its last three games at the Bell Centre. The Canadiens have dropped 5-of-7 overall. The Canadiens, who will celebrate their 100th anniversary ..."

'I was anticipating the play'

Comment

November 10

Calgary Herald

"Curtis Glencross wasn't talking Monday morning. Nor was Brent Sutter. The National Hockey League, however, had its say, suspending the Calgary Flames winger three games for his hit Saturday on New York Rangers centre Chris Drury. Glencross's transgression — officially, "for delivering a high hit to an unsuspecting opponent" — will cost him $18,652.86 US in forfeited salary. Requested by the media immediately after practice, Glencross declined to discuss his check, which had left the Rangers captain in a heap — and concussed — in front of the visitors' bench. Sutter chose to stay mum, too. "I guess we'll see, we'll see as it goes along here," the Flames coach said of a potential suspension. ..."

Crossing the line

Comment

November 10

Calgary Herald

"For openers, Curtis Glencross is not a dirty player. He hunts hits, not heads. He is, on most nights, save one, almost the prototype of the Polygraph-honest, tough-as-old-shoe-leather, bordering-on-reckless winger. Yes, he plays (or should) with an edge, at speed, his avowed aim to clatter into anything that's breathing and doesn't occupy space near him inside the Calgary Flames' dressing room. Which is precisely what he is handsomely paid to do. What makes him an effective, valuable commodity in the first place. Nor is he guilty of having a longer list of priors than Dillinger. On Monday, though, lawgiver Colin Campbell brought down his gavel in the NHL court of justice and Glencross got ..."

Conroy sticking with new '5-iron'

Comment

November 10

Calgary Herald

"Craig Conroy traded in the driver for a 5-iron last week and, so far, it hasn't helped either as he continues his quest for his first goal of the season. Driver for 5-iron? Yeah, he's changed the straight blade on his hockey stick for a curved blade. "I think a lot is I need to get the puck up quicker," said the always accomodating veteran centre. "Every time I'm around the net, the goalies just butterfly, they're down and when you have a straight stick, it's a little more work to get the puck up. "This one I can just flick it and it goes top corner or into the upper half of the net without really thinking about it." Being an old school guy, the change didn't come easily but he's hoping ..."

Thinking less helps Iggy break shackles

Comment

November 10

Calgary Herald

"A week ago, Jarome Iginla was dealing with the lingering aftermath of a rotten evening against the Detroit Red Wings. The no shots, the minus-two, the five giveaways — and, yes, the criticism. Calgary Flames coach Brent Sutter had given his popular captain the business. Publicly, yet. Now here Iginla is, seven days later, trying to explain his about-face — how so-so became go-go. How he turned into the National Hockey League's player of the week, like that (insert snap of fingers here). After that crummy Oct. 31 date with the Wings, Iginla had responded with his three finest games of the young season. "It's not easy to say why, you know what I mean?" said Iginla. "I wish it would have been ..."

Iginla silences his critics

Comment

November 10

Calgary Sun

"No, he wasn't falling off of Team Canada's Olympic radar, nor was he on the verge of becoming trade fodder. However, despite raising the bar so impossibly high for himself over the last handful of years even Jarome Iginla knew it was about time for him to reassert himself as both team leader and scoring threat. So he did. On the heels of a backdoor flu shot fiasco that wound up being the shot in the arm he just might have been looking for, the Flames captain did last week what he's always done: Prove all doubters wrong. "I think it's happened so many times over the years," laughed pal Craig Conroy of a brief lull in Iginla's game that saw him go without a shot against Detroit a week ago. ..."

Red-hot Flames visit Habs

Comment

November 10

Montreal Gazette

"If the Canadiens hope to get back to .500 tonight, they'll have to stop a red-hot Calgary team led by .... René Bourque? The Flames come into the Bell Centre Tuesday night (7:30 p.m., RDS, CJAD Radio-800) with a 10-4-1 record and a three-game winning streak. While Jarome Iginla appears to have regained his scoring – he leads the team with eight goals – Bourque is the Flames' leading scorer with six goals and 11 assists. Bourque has answered the No. 1 question facing the Flames in the off-season: Who will provide the secondary scoring after the loss of Todd Bertuzzi and Mike Cammalleri? The line of Bourque, Daymond Langkow and Nigel Dawes have played so well in the early going that, if they ..."

Glencross suspended 3 games for Drury hit

Comment

November 10

Calgary Sun

"Curtis Glencross will feel the effects of a head-shot for the next three games. The NHL decided Monday to suspend the Flames speedster for games in Montreal, Buffalo and Toronto, even though he insists it was his intention only to slow down Chris Drury, who the New York Rangers say suffered a concussion on a collision involving the two players during Saturday's 3-1 Flames victory at the Saddledome. "I was anticipating the play as the puck was being moved out of the zone," said Glencross of an early-game hit that dropped Drury. "My intent was to impede that process, and it unfortunately resulted in an awkward collision with Drury." Just 48 seconds into the game, Glencross bodied Drury, who ..."

Glencross Suspended Three Games for Hit on Rangers' Drury

Comment

November 10

New York Times

"The N.H.L. announced Monday that it had suspended Flames forward Curtis Glencross three games for a blindside hit to Rangers center Chris Drury on Saturday night in Calgary. In a news release, the league said that Glencross was suspended "for delivering a high hit to an unsuspecting opponent." Drury, who sustained a concussion from the hit, was turning out of the Rangers' zone without the puck as Glencross skated cross-ice and brushed past him, bumping Drury's head with his shoulder. Drury was helped off the ice and did not return. Glencross was not penalized on the play."

Iginla player of the week, Glencross gets three games

Comment

November 9

Calgary Herald

"Before his three-game suspension was made public Monday morning, Flames winger Curtis Glencross, who had concussed Rangers C Chris Drury with a hit on Saturday, declined to meet the media this morning before the team departed for Montreal. Flames coach Brent Sutter also refused to talk about the check. Glencross practised as the fourth member of the fourth line this morning. More chatty, not surprisingly, were the Flames about Jarome Iginla, who, in leading the Flames to three wins, was named the NHL's player of the week. The Flames captain produced five points, including the game-winning goal Wednesday at Dallas. In other news, Sutter pounded his troops through a tough session Monday ..."

NHL suspends Glencross

Comment

November 9

Calgary Sun

"Calgary Flames forward Curtis Glencross has been suspended following his hit on New York Rangers captain Chris Drury on Saturday. Glencross has been given a three-game suspension by the NHL. He was not penalized on the play, eventually won by the Flames, 3-1."

Alternative alternates abound in Sutter's system

Comment

November 9

Calgary Herald

"Currently in business is the firm of Craig Conroy & Jay Bouwmeester. On deck? Cory Sarich & Olli Jokinen. These are the Calgary Flames' alternate-captain units, operating in conjunction with permanent letter-holders Jarome Iginla and Robyn Regehr. Having already gone through the rotation are Dion Phaneuf and Daymond Langkow. That was October, with the former wearing an A at home, the latter on the road. November features Bouwmeester with an extra letter on his jersey for away matches, and Conroy for appearances at the Pengrowth Saddledome. December, then, turns to the other A-team — Sarich and Jokinen. Coach Brent Sutter says he plans to deploy the floating "A" for the entire season. "I ..."

Flames News