Calgary Flames' Eric Nystrom Needs a Spark To Realize Potential

It is hard to knock the Calgary Flames' Eric Nystrom; he is consistently one of the hardest-working players, night in and night out, and usually adds energy in every game he plays.

What more can you ask for from a perennial third-line player?

He is a dependable two-way player who possesses very good hockey sense and goes about his job quietly every shift.

After 45 games this season, Nystrom has already matched his career high in goals with five and points with 10. By looking at his stats in 167 games with the Flames, maybe we as fans shouldn't expect too much more.

But he scored four of those goals in the Flames' first 10 games of the season, and since then he has hit a cold spell that makes the Oilers' struggles look laughable, as he has put up just one goal in his last 35 games and none in his last 28.

Sure, he brings more intangibles to the table than scoring goals—but with that being said, during last season's playoffs, Nystrom was by far Calgary's best player, putting up two goals and two assists in six games against Chicago.

While he will always draw comparison to his father, Bob Nystrom—the former New York Islanders clutch goal-scorer—I believe he has the potential to be as good, if not better.

The younger Nystrom may just need to realize that himself; we all know confidence breeds success.

The simple fix may be to just shoot more: He is second to last on the team (for players that have played more than 40 games this season) in shots with 55, yet he is 10th on the team in shooting percentage at 9.1 percent.

Nystrom may just need to look back at last year's playoffs and see the reasons he was successful: He played a very up-tempo game, was relentless, and had such high energy that it was impossible for him not to be in a position to score.

Playing that way, he is more than capable of becoming a 20-goal man in the NHL.

That is something the Calgary Flames could desperately use right now, as they continue to struggle to find the back of the net. Only Edmonton, Phoenix, and St. Louis have scored fewer goals in the Western Conference, and two of those teams are on the outside looking in when it comes to a playoff spot.

While Eric Nystrom may think he will never be the player his father was, there is an age old saying that goes, "It's not who you are that holds you back; it's who you think you're not."

From where I am sitting, I don't believe Nystrom is a mediocre third-line player that is good for five to 10 goals a season.

Unfortunately, however, he may believe otherwise.