A 4-0 deficit in the third period, on the road?
Most teams might be thinking about slinking out of town, without further physical or emotional damage.
The Calgary Flames, as they often do in the nick of time, turned up the heat.
With four goals in a 10-minute span against the Ottawa Senators, the Flames forced overtime, before losing in a shoot-out on Sunday.
It was a valuable point, but also a reminder that Calgary – normally an NHL afterthought – will not go down quietly this year.
“It was a good comeback,” veteran centre Mikael Backlund told NHL.com.
“There’s been so many, it’s hard to rate it.”
In fact, no team has more than the 10 wins the Flames have collected when trailing after two periods.
The ability to rally has kept the Flames alive in the post-season, and perched in third place in the Pacific Division.
Realistically, though, they are locked in a mass brawl with seven other Western Conference teams for the bottom four play-off spots.
If Calgary can hold on, they will be a post-season team for the first time since 2009.
They also will be seeking their first play-off series win since advancing to the Stanley Cup finals and losing in 2004.
Coach Bob Hartley reiterated during their recent seven-game road trip (4-2-1) that these Flames always had play-off aspirations.
“We’ve said it since day one and we believe it,” Hartley said.
Sceptics still point out that the Flames are a statistical anomaly. For example, the team are ranked 28th in Corsi (a measure of scoring chances generated versus scoring chances allowed).
Goaltenders Jonas Hiller and Karri Ramo have been sharing time, mostly because neither has been particularly strong.
Before the season began, it was projected as another tread-water year, while the team got younger and put ice time in the bank.
The future seemed more focused on prospects, like their No 4 pick in the 2014 draft, Sam Bennett.
Even that would require patience, since a shoulder injury kept the 18-year-old centre sidelined until last month, when he finally took the ice for the Kingston Frontenacs.
Instead, the Flames kept everyone entertained at home.
Led by veteran centre Jiri Hudler, 31, and gritty defenceman Mark Giordano, 31, with sooner-than-expected breakout seasons from left wing Johnny Gaudreau, 21, and centre Sean Monahan, 20, the Flames moved into contention and stayed there.
Hudler paces the team with 56 points, while Monahan is the top goalscorer with 24.
The challenges, of course, do not relent – Giordano tore a tendon in his bicep last month and is done for the season.
Pundits quickly generated “it was fun while it lasted” chatter, and expected the team to fall off a cliff.
Since Giordano’s injury, however, the Flames are 3-1-1, including successive victories in three of the NHL’s most intimidating venues – Philadelphia, Boston and Detroit.
The Flames are not home free, yet, but their post-season chase and their flair for the dramatic have made it an entertaining – and hopeful – season.
Even Bennett’s minor league debut has been rosy, registering 11 points in his first six games.
“The magic tricks – it doesn’t run out, it seems,” Hartley said in an interview with the Calgary Sun recently.
“The rabbits keep popping out.”
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
MATCH INFO
Mumbai Indians 186-6 (20 ovs)
Kings XI Punjab 183-5 (20 ovs)
Mumbai Indians won by three runs
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Women’s World T20, Asia Qualifier
UAE results
Beat China by 16 runs
Lost to Thailand by 10 wickets
Beat Nepal by five runs
Beat Hong Kong by eight wickets
Beat Malaysia by 34 runs
Standings (P, W, l, NR, points)
1. Thailand 5 4 0 1 9
2. UAE 5 4 1 0 8
3. Nepal 5 2 1 2 6
4. Hong Kong 5 2 2 1 5
5. Malaysia 5 1 4 0 2
6. China 5 0 5 0 0
Final
Thailand v UAE, Monday, 7am
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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more from Janine di Giovanni
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
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Shooting Ghosts: A U.S. Marine, a Combat Photographer, and Their Journey Back from War by Thomas J. Brennan and Finbarr O’Reilly
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 268hp at 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: CVT auto
Fuel consumption: 9.5L/100km
On sale: now
Price: from Dh195,000
