Delightfully Devilish

NEWARK – Take a bow, Jacob Markstrom.

In a season packed with impeccable performances, this one ranks right near the top.

The 34-year-old, who is clearly a frontrunner as the team's MVP, was ‘Rock’-solid for the Flames early and often, setting the table for a 5-3 win over the New Jersey Devils on Thursday at the Prudential Center.

The Flames got better throughout the night and really tilted the ice for much of the second half – but without the heroics of their wily, No.-1 netminder and his 37 saves, none of it would be possible.

Mikael Backlund, Connor Zary, Kevin Rooney, Andrei Kuzmenko and Andrew Mangiapane (empty net) supplied the offence as the Flames won their second straight on this four-game trip and improve to 24-22-5 on the year.

"He has," Head Coach Ryan Huska said of Markstrom 'holding the fort.' "Like we've talked a lot about him lately. And this is the best since I've been around him - or he's been with us - that I've seen him play. He's been giving us a chance to win every night. That's why you have a goaltender of that calibre."

With the Flames up 2-1 early in the third, Rooney scored his first in a Calgary sweater, before Nico Hischier responded for the homeside, making it a one-goal game once again only 1:07 later.

"It definitely felt really good to contribute in that way," beamed Rooney, whose last NHL goal came way back on Dec. 7, 2021, when he was a member of the New York Rangers. "It's been a long couple years and obviously I would've liked to have done it sooner, but (I'm) looking ahead and trying to worry about the present, keep getting better and helping the team do whatever I can."

To read more on Rooney's inspiration road back to The Show, click here.

Yegor Sharangovich had a pair of chances to extend the lead – first, ringing the Flames’ fourth shot off the iron with a nifty set of hands in tight, before Vitek Vanecek made a right-toe save to deny the former Devil shortly after Hischier cut the deficit.

Kuzmenko restored the two-goal cushion with 9:56 to play, spinning and firing into the open side after corralling a rebound left by Noah Hanifin's 92.1-mph point blast - netting his second in as many games after being acquired by the Vancouver Canucks earlier this week.

Hanifin, meanwhile, finished with a pair of helpers.

Ondrej Palat pulled the Devils back in it with his second of the game at 13:46, and once again, the Flames were forced to play with - and more importantly, protect - a one-goal lead.

This time, however, the Devils couldn't complete the comeback - like they'd done a league-leading 17 times previously this season.

Mangiapane sealed it with an empty-netter at 18:26.

The Flames got the first good chance of the game early when Jakob Pelletier showed off the handles, maneuvering tight in phone booth before sending a pass from the right circle to Walker Duehr in the slot. Duehr uncorked a slapper, but it kissed the blocker-side post behind Vanecek.

From there, the Devils turned up the heat and tallied eight of the first nine shots of the game, including a number of 10-bellers that Markstrom had to be sharp on.

The best came off the stick of Hischier, who bowled his way to the paint and connected with a beautiful, cross-crease feed from Jesper Bratt. Markstrom, though, stood his ground, flashing the right pad to keep it a 0-0 game.

Former Flame Tyler Toffoli made a couple of nice moves in tight only moments after the Hischier chance, but Markstrom – splayed out and sliding precariously outside of the trapezoid – smothered all three of sniper’s Grade-A looks.

The Devils came close – again – on the very next shift, with Bratt sending an impossible goalmouth pass to Palat off the rush, but his try rang off the near bar before MacKenzie Weegar cleared it to safety.

Unfortunately for the Flames, the most dangerous Devils went back to work within moments and this time, they cashed.

Hischier sprung Bratt on a 2-on-1 with Palat and after the puck-carrier fooled everyone with a filthy fake shot, Palat had an easy tap-in to make it 1-0 New Jersey on their 10th shot of the period.

The Devils, clearly buoyed by the return of superstar Jack Hughes to the lineup, were buzzing.

But with Markstrom keeping his group in the game early, the visitors were only one shot from earning a split after 20 minutes.

Cue the captain.

Backlund smacked home an Andrew Mangiapane centring pass to make it a 1-1 game at 18:10. Former Devil Blake Coleman added the second assist by doing what he does best, getting on the forecheck, laying the body on Luke Hughes, and forcing a change in possession.

Shots on goal favoured the Devils 12-10, while the homeside carried a 4-0 edge in high-danger chances, after one period of play.

"We didn't really like our first," Rooney said. "I thought we were turning too many pucks over and once we kept it simple and got pucks behind their D - they're probably one of the best rush teams in the league, so you can't really give them anything. I thought we made some good adjustments after the first."

The Flames took a 2-1 lead early in the second period, capping one of the wildest sequences of the season. The Devils’ top trio of Hughes, Toffoli and Alexander Holtz took off on a 3-on-2, with Holtz tattooing a one-timer from the near circle that Markstrom fought off, before falling to his keister and stopping Toffoli on the rebound. Eventually – and with Markstrom scrambling back into position – Hughes got a crack at the wide-open net, but Martin Pospisil made an impressive defensive play, blocking the sniper’s bid with his right skate.

The Flames took it right back the other way and after Nazem Kadri’s weak shot from the high slot leaked through Vanecek, Zary bolted his way to the crease and plunged home his 12th of the year. The youngster added an assist on the Kuzmenko tally to give him a two-point night.

"It was a nice one," Zary laughed of his emotional, gaze-to-the-heavens-type celebration. "Honestly, I was just gliding towards the net and crowd kind of scored that one for me going, 'Oooh.' And I thought, 'Ope, I better take a couple strides and check it out!' I was just looking up laughing to myself. That was a nice one from the crowd."

That goal seemed to turn the tide.

The Flames took over the game late in the second, with all four lines contributing offensively. However, their best chances came from the top line and, specifically, Kuzmenko. No. 96 nearly gave the road team a two-goal cushion with a backhand wrap, before immediately getting the puck and having a clean look between the hashmarks.

But somehow, with Vanecek well out of position, Nathan Bastian stepped into the firing line and made a key block with his pants.

Moments later, Pospisil got a piece of a Weegar point shot that clanked off the base of the iron, before Kadri and Rasmus Andersson both struck metal on the very next shift.

It was a sign of things to come, as the Flames continued to press offensively and finished the night with a 10-9 edge in high-danger scoring chances over the final 40 minutes.

"In the first, they were playing well (but) we got a huge goal by Backs to tie it up coming back in the room," said Jonathan Huberdeau, who played in his 800th career game. "We knew we had more in the tank and in the second period we just came out and were a pack of hyenas. I've got to throw it out there. Everybody's saying it. I learned something the other day. We looked good in the second period and that's the game we've got to play."

The Lineup:

Forwards

Jonathan Huberdeau - Yegor Sharangovich - Andrei Kuzmenko
Connor Zary - Nazem Kadri - Martin Pospisil
Andrew Mangiapane - Mikael Backlund - Blake Coleman
Jakob Pelletier - Kevin Rooney - Walker Duehr

Defence

MacKenzie Weegar - Rasmus Andersson
Noah Hanifin - Chris Tanev
Oliver Kylington - Brayden Pachal

Goaltenders

Jacob Markstrom - Starter
Dan Vladar

Scratches: Cole Schwindt, Dennis Gilbert, Jordan Oesterle

They Said It:

The Numbers Game:

Shots: CGY 30, NJD 40

Powerplay: CGY 0-for-3, NJD 0-for-2

Faceoffs: CGY 47.5%, NJD 52.5%

Blocked Shots: CGY 14, NJD 17

Hits: CGY 9, NJD 14

5-on-5 Scoring Chances: CGY 23, NJD 27

5-on-5 High-Danger Scoring Chances: CGY 10, NJD 13

Up Next:

The Flames continue this four-game road trip on Saturday when they face off with the New York Islanders in a matinee tilt (11 a.m. MT), before bussing to Manhattan to take on the Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Monday (5 p.m. MT).