'I'm So Excited'

Not even he thought it was possible.

But now that it was happening - it was a real-life occurrence and not some punishing, out-of-body illusion - the smile said it all.

With four years, a WHL title and a lifetime of memories awaiting him back ‘home’ in Seattle, Lucas Ciona couldn’t have picked a better place to make his NHL preseason debut.

“I'm so excited,” Ciona said before boarding a flight west to the shores of the Puget Sound. “To me, Seattle’s home – and getting a chance to go home in a situation like this is pretty cool. My billet mom and her kids are going to be there and I’ve got a bunch of my ex-teammates coming, too. It's a really cool rink and it's super cool going back to place that has such a fond place in my heart.”

Ciona – a sixth-round pick in the 2021 Draft – will be part of the Flames’ travelling continent that will face the Seattle Kraken tonight at Climate Pledge Arena.

The Edmonton native is no stranger to the barn, having played two games there over the past two seasons as a member of the WHL’s Thunderbirds. Certainly, though, stepping foot on the ice in an NHL sweater for the first time will have a considerably different feel to it.

“It was packed even for those games,” said Ciona, who captained the Thunderbirds to a league championship last spring and made his first-ever appearance at the Memorial Cup. “I can only imagine what tonight will be like.”

Fortunately, he won’t have to for much longer.

Ciona, who got a “head start” on many in camp with a stirring appearance at last week’s Young Stars Classic, is feeling good about his game and where he stands in the organization. Admittedly, his ears perked up when he heard the off-season comments from Craig Conroy and Ryan Huska, who said young players will be given every opportunity to succeed.

And it all starts tonight.

“It’s a lot different this time around,” he said. “Last year, none of the young guys really got to play in the preseason. I made my warmup debut, but I didn't get anything else. It's pretty cool this year to see the younger guys including myself getting into the lineup early in the preseason and even mixing around with the older guys.

“It’s been really eye opening and I want to take advantage of it.

“I trained with (Dillon) Dube all summer and you watch him every day because he's such a good pro and is a great leader for the young guys. He's a guy I’ve really (connected) with.

“But honestly? Everybody's been pretty fun to watch.

“It's the NHL.

“It's unreal.”

Domo Arigato, Matt Coronato

How’s this for high praise?

Moments after the talented Flames rookie brought the house down with his hat-trick snipe, Head Coach Ryan Huska made a flattering connection to one of the game’s great shooters”

“Some guys can shoot the puck,” Huska began. “I remember Brett Hull … He could hit it from anywhere – in front of him, behind him, anywhere. So, some guys have a gift that they just know how to hit a puck and I think (Coronato is) one of them.”

Talk about making an impression.

Coronato, meanwhile, is taking the acclaim in stride – but freely admits that lethal release is more of a recent development than a gift he discovered on the driveway as a youngster.

Now?

It’s become a weapon.

“I've definitely worked on it a little more over the last couple years,” Coronato said. “From my time in Chicago when I played for the Steel, it was a skill we worked on a ton. We would always work on changing our release point, getting pucks off faster. I think being there really helped me.

“When I have time, I like to just snap it as quick as I can. But there are moments when you see guys pull it in to try and shoot around traffic. Being able to shoot a bunch of different ways is what makes you most effective these days, and that's something I'm constantly working at.”

Coronato will be back in action tonight on the road in Seattle.

Dual Threat

Jonathan Huberdeau said following Sunday’s 10-0 win that Coronato’s shot is “one of the best (he’s) ever seen.”

It very well could be.

But he isn’t giving himself enough credit.

Huberdeau scored twice – including a first-period dandy that saw him show great patience in the slot before rifling a shot upstairs. In all, he finished with four shot attempts and the two that arrived on target both tickled the twine.

“I mean, I guess I'm a shooter now,” Huberdeau laughed. “I heard it a lot last year from the stands, that I had to shoot. It felt great. It's one game, preseason, but it's good for the confidence.”

On Monday, Huska was asked about this and how an assertive Huberdeau can impact the Flames offensively this year:

“He is a pass-first guy and he would probably tell you that his whole life he's been told to shoot more. But getting him to understand that there's a time and a place to pass and there's a time and a place to shoot (is important). ... It's just ingrained in him that he's a pass-first guy. Because of that, I think the guys that he plays with – I think a little bit of the onus has to go on them as well – that they always have to make sure that they're ready. Because even in situations where you're not expecting a pass, you should be thinking this thing is coming. That's just the way he thinks and processes the game. 

“When he has opportunities to shoot, we want him to shoot, there's no doubt about it.

“Because you see the type of shot that he does have.”