'SIMPLIFY THINGS'

When the Flames are at their best, they're breaking the puck out clean, attacking with speed, getting in behind the defence and putting their work boots on.
Yes, it's every bit the cliché it sounds like.
'Pucks in deep' and all.

But it's also the most effective way to break down the neutral-zone trap and allow your gritty, offensive forwards to flourish.
Over the past two games - and in particular on Saturday when the Flames dropped a 3-1 decision - the Canucks did well to take away time and space through the middle.
Nothing came easy for the visitors, puck management became an issue, and turnovers happened far too often.
So, it certainly begs the question: Was this a different, more effective look from the Canucks than, say, in their previous three meetings?
Or were the Flames just a bit off?
"I think in both games, they've made it very difficult on us to break the puck out and get through the neutral zone clean," said Milan Lucic. "They're kind of playing like a full-court press with how aggressive they've been.
"That's when you have to simplify things and make short passes and come up the ice together. Just get the puck in deep and rely on our forecheck and stuff like that.
"When you try to get fancy and do too much, you tend to get yourself in trouble and you're turning the puck over. Sometimes, you have to play a simpler game, and doing those types of things, that's how you break it out successfully."

That's not to suggest that dumping the puck in should be your only source of offence. But when your opponent is clogging things up and making your zone entries more challenging, you have to take the ice that's available.
Players such as Lucic, Matthew Tkachuk, Andrew Mangiapane, Dillon Dube and Sam Bennett thrive in that environment. They work tirelessly on the forecheck, win puck battles and use their feet to bring pucks to the high-danger areas of the ice.
Doing that brings balance to your attack, forces your opponent to respect both strategies, and potentially opens up ice to allow teammates such as Johnny Gaudreau to attack the line with speed.
Both are key components of this team's identity, and returning to that playing style tonight is all-important.
"Especially when you're in this type of schedule and playing the same team more than once," Lucic said. "It feels like a lot like a playoff series, in-season.
"You've got to have a short-term memory. Obviously, you have to go over what happened last game, but the nice thing is that you can make adjustments.
"We had a great practice yesterday we're all looking forward to tonight. That's all that matters."
The Flames are 3-1 against the Canucks this year - and 7-6-1 through the first quarter of the campaign. While consistency has bee an issue for this club at points during the season, there's been more good than bad to draw from.
And tonight, in the third of four straight meetings with their West-Coast rivals, the Flames have the perfect opportunity to show their mettle with a determined, bounce-back effort.
"I think it's been a little Jekyll and Hyde," Lucic said of the first 14 games. "Our 'good' has been really good.
"It just hasn't been there enough, if you ask me, in the first quarter of the season.
"It's only a 56-game season, so you don't have that much time to figure things out.
"It just comes down to consistency, being 'stubborn' in your play and doing the same thing, shift after shift, and game after game. Maybe we're not stubborn enough in playing the exact same way every single shift, so I think that's what we need to do a little bit more of."