SAN JOSE — It makes you wince every time you see it.
But truth be told, everybody loves a good shot block.
This time of year, those bumps and bruises serve as badges of honour, visualization of a player’s selflessness.
And willingness to ‘eat one,’ so to speak.
But what goes into a good shot block?
Is there form and function, or in the heat of the moment, is it all about throwing caution to the wind?
“I don’t know if there’s a technique or anything that I’ve learnt, just try and get your body in front of it,” Joel Hanley explained Monday morning, likely in anticipation of having to step in front of a few more biscuits as the Flames face the Sharks tonight. “Whether it’s your hand, or your leg - hopefully not your face - anything that you can get in front of it, that’s what I try to do.
“Our defencemen take a lot of pride in that. Especially for a defensive defenceman like myself.”
Hanley famously put his face in front of a blast a few weeks ago at Madison Square Garden, trying to do anything - everything - to help his team win.
Former Flame Chris Tanev lunged face-first in front of a William Karlsson shot last year at the Scotiabank Saddledome, too, turning the C of Red’s collective jaws into weight-bearing magnets that collectively hurtled to the floor.
Hanley’s teammates take note of those things, though.
“It’s scary, but you love to see the pride and the passion,” MacKenzie Weegar said Monday with a wry grin. “It’s contagious.
“I think they love it. It gets the team going. It’s almost - for some guys - it’s like scoring a goal, you see everybody cheering, the crowd loves it. I think it helps that person’s mentality the rest of the game, you get into the game a little bit more.
“It’s like taking a hit, making a hit.”
Courage aside, though, is there a good place to take a puck?
Skaters aren’t afforded the bulky equipment of goaltenders, but those one-timers - like the ones Rasmus Andersson stepped in front of last time the Flames visited Alexander Ovechkin and the Capitals - come just as fast.
“Wherever there’s padding. Shins are a good spot, usually the chest isn’t too bad,” explained Hanley. “Sometimes you’ll get hit, and it’s not ’til like the next day, and you’re like ‘Oh, wow! There’s a bruise on me, that must have been from a shot block.’
“I would say anywhere, where there’s padding.”
“You definitely don’t want anything up high,” Weegar added. “For me, it’s anything in the skate. It’s tough to get that skate back on if you take on in the foot, or the ankle.
“I try and avoid those spots.”
Even though sometimes, you just can’t.
Andersson leads Calgary’s skaters - and sits third in the NHL - with 184 blocks this year, with Weegar close behind at 176.
The trio - Andersson, Weegar and Hanley - sit 1-2-3 among active Flames skaters in blocks per 60 minutes, too.
It’s a skill, a source of pride.
And as the Flames continue their pursuit of a Wild Card spot, every block helps save a goal, and gives everyone on the bench a bit of a boost, too.
“It shows your teammates how much it means to you, putting your body on the line and doing whatever it takes to win,” said Hanley. “Especially these last 20 games.
“Whether it’s a big goal or a shot block, it all matters for sure.”
