Event Favorite Matthew Lombardi Falls Short in Flames Superskills Competition

Jeff VanderElzen — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 17:57:33 -0500

It's that time of the season agian. The NHL is just under a week away from its annual All-Star game, which has teams around the league buzzing for bragging rights.

Of course, not every player in the National Hockey League will have the chance to participate in the event this year, being held in front of a sold-out audience in Montreal, Quebec. However, like the other 29 teams in the league, the Calgary Flames held their own annual Superskills competition Sunday, at the Pengrowth Saddledome.

Much like the events held on the day prior to each year's East vs. West on-ice match-up, the players around the league are given the chance through a series of relays and obstacle courses to display their talents, such as Fastest Skater, Hardest Shot, Puck Control, and the Shootout Match-Up of post-lockout fame.

Team Iginla with Langkow and Bourque (and "Kipper" between the pipes) took the shoot-out event in front of some 17,000 roaring fans. To no surprise, Miikka Kiprusoff shined as the better of the two Flames goaltenders, next to rookie back-up Curtis McElhinney.

Adrian Aucoin defended his title from last season as the man with the hardest shot, knotting a miraculous 102mph. Coincidentally Aucoin is the only Flame to still use a wooden stick. Flames forward Andre Roy, acquired from Tampa Bay in the 2008-2009 off-season, finished second in the event.

The puck control event was won by Calgary Flames forward Eric Nystrom, much to the dismay of forward Mike Cammalleri, after an untimely wipe-out during the same event. However, Cammalleri did manage to go four for five in the accuracy competition, thus winning the event.

The most exciting part of the competition was the fastest skater event, in which Flames centerman Matthew Lombardi, who held the team record in the last two consecutive seasons, was upset by former Edmonton Oiler forward Curtis Glencross who ended up winning the event.

To no surprise, Lombardi did manage to finish second in the event under Glencross, who was also the winner in the same event last year, partaking in Edmonton's super-skills competition and being crowned fastest skater.

As far as the organization goes, the most that really comes out of this type of event (next to bragging rights, of course) is the opportunity for those skaters of less than All-Star status to showcase their abilities, as well as to learn from the strengths and weaknesses of fellow team mates.

It also gives the coaching staff better insight on which players to potentially pair up together, whom to work with a little more closely based on improvement attempts, and most importantly, who the team's unsung leaders are.

The event also brings the players together in a different type of atmosphere, with the pressure off, some might agree that these types of events are also bonding rituals, in a sense. The more fun a team can have off the ice or out of the game, the better the team can function as a group when the pressure's on, and drive for that one common goal which ends in a championship ring.

Langkow on Hot Streak; Flames First in Northwest Division

Jeff VanderElzen — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 01:27:45 -0500

No doubt about it. Calgary Flames forward Daymond Langkow has been nothing short of spectacular.

In the last five games, Langkow has collected 5 goals and 2 assists for 7 points, which in turn makes him one of the hottest players in the league as of late. In fact, some (or most) might argue that he has exceeded and excelled in most, if not all categories of the game so far this season.

During the Flames' "hot streak", in which the last thirteen games they have only been served one loss in regulation to the Chicago Blackhawks, Calgary is definitely showing the National Hockey League that they won't go down without a fight.

Cliché, when you look at the word "fight", the Flames have had their share of the fisticuffs.

Whether it be Andre Roy defending a downed team mate, or Jarome Iginla trying to settle old scores by dropping the gloves with familiar rivals, the Calgary Flames have not fallen short of being an exciting team to watch during this 2009 campaign.

Some may say that the Northwest Division is in fact one of the toughest divisions in the entire league, but, as Calgary Flames Head Coach Mike Keenan put it earlier this week, "This is a tough league, you need to show up every night and give it your all, regardless of who you're playing." How true it is.

This season, the league has seen a lot of upsets mixed with huge surprises.

The Washington Capitals have been steadily holding their division. The Boston Bruins, after a rocky few seasons are just a point behind San Jose for the best record in the NHL; most teams shine brighter than the Dallas Stars, who not only defeated the Sharks in the second round of last year's playoffs to move on to the Western Conference Finals, but surprisingly, have dug themselves a hole that may cost them a playoff spot this year.

Detroit is looking strong, as usual, but not as most had expected. The Pittsburgh Penguins, however, after a strong Stanley Cup Final appearance last season against the Wings, are looking towards an offseason full of changes and re-evaluations.

From long to short, the National Hockey League, arguably, is in the midst of change. Which, in turn, brings me back to Daymond Langkow.

Most critics around the league and the world of professional hockey are focusing on players like Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane and Alex Ovechkin as being the new game-changing faces of the NHL. The young guns, the new talent, the perseverance, etc.

Sure, there are a lot of new and upcoming faces in the NHL which will no doubt help define the future of the game, but at the same time, the underlined over-exposure of such new talent has caused some veterans to take a back seat in the NHL spotlight.

Calgary Flames forward Daymond Langkow, brandishing the solid number "22" on the back of his sweater, is by far one of the best players in the league this month. Sure, he's not one of the league's top scorers, but when he does collect points, as of late, it has been when it matters.

Coming off of a 5-2 Flames victory over the Western Conference's point-leading San Jose Sharks, Langkow collected two goals, his first multi-goal game of the season.

Of course, the league has seen better performances by its top stars, but when an NHL team gets secondary scoring at such a consistent rate, as the Calgary Flames have had lately with players such as Rene Bourque, Todd Bertuzzi, Curtis Glencross, David Moss, and Mike Camallerri, one cannot deny Calgary the sure possibility of a great playoff run come the 2009 NHL post-season.

Bleacher Report - Articles by Jeff VanderElzen

Event Favorite Matthew Lombardi Falls Short in Flames Superskills Competition

Langkow on Hot Streak; Flames First in Northwest Division