Calgary Flames defeated Dallas Stars in Game 3 of the Western Conference First Round playoffs. The finals result of the match was 2-0 for the Canadians, who bounced back following yesterday’s loss.
The Flames were near a massive comeback in Game 2, but Jamie Oleksiak scored a late goal to deny their surge and deliver the Stars their first win of the series.
Cam Talbot led the way for Calgary, and the 33-year old posted 35 saves, from which 16 were in the second period once Stars put heavy pressure on the rivals who got away only because of Talbot’s magnificent reactions.
“Yes we Cam” as the fans call him due to excellent performances in the series against the Winnipeg Jets came to Flames before this season on a one-year $2.75 million and turned out to be arguably the best acquisition of the Flames’ management.
After being a backup to David Rittich throughout the majority of the regular part of the campaign, Talbot emerged as the starter following the restart, not missing one minute of action since the playoffs started.
Mikael Backlund and TJ Brodie were the scorers for the Canadians. Backlund scored a shorthanded goal with 5:58 of the middle frame, after Zac Rinaldo being penalized for hooking.
The Flames scored a shorthanded goal against the Stars in yesterday’s game, too, in the moments when they chased the result.
Brodie’s hit came at 10:36 of the last period. It was a slap shot from around the high slot, and a definite morale killer for Dallas who didn’t have any chances for coming back after this goal.
"Geoff Ward has sent everybody a message tonight, and that is that Cam Talbot is the number one goaltender for the Flames."https://t.co/KUpjm4hNIX
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) August 15, 2020
The franchise from Texas came in this one as the slight favorite, because Flames played without arguably their best player, Matthew Tkachuk. He sat out after picking up a massive collision with Jamie Benn and Jamie Oleksiak, who sandwiched the winger in Game 2. According to the sources from inside the club, Tkachuk should play Game 4.
Dallas outshot the opponents in the third period too, but without any success. The 34-year old Anton Khudobin started his first game for the Stars since the series began, but he didn’t impress, allowing two goals and posting 21 saves.
The next game is on this Sunday at 2 pm ET, in Edmonton, the hub city for the Western Conference.
