Flames stay in playoff hunt after dramatic review, Markstrom’s heroics

Half the Calgary Flames had left the bench, stomping into the dressing in anger over what they thought was the team’s latest overtime loss.

Some even started undressing.

Not Jacob Markstrom.

The biggest reason the game had gotten that far stood patiently alongside Darryl Sutter and a handful of teammates who weren’t quite sure what to think as the league’s war room contemplated the possibility of overturning the play due to off-side.

Mere seconds before banging in a rebound for the game’s only goal, Jared Spurgeon’s skates both clearly entered the Flames’ zone ahead of the puck as he backed in with it and made a pass.

Alas, the league determined that since Spurgeon didn’t have the puck on his tape as he crossed the line, he wasn’t deemed to have possession.

No goal, giving the Flames another crack at keeping their slim playoff hopes alive.

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Less than 24 hours after Tyler Toffoli breathed new life into the team with a last-second game-winner in Dallas, he capped the shootout by finding Filip Gustavsson’s five-hole to play the hero again in a crucial 1-0 win in St. Paul over the Wild.

“I think there was 10 of us in the room,” said Toffoli, smiling. “We thought the game was over, obviously.

“There was some gear (off) — I’m not going to name names.

“My jersey might have been off.

“Obviously we heard everyone screaming to get back out there and Darryl told us to get our heads back into it, and we found a way.”

Markstrom tried to remain calm on the bench, as the dramatic turn of events unfolded.

“Instead of being mad and losing it, I just figured I’d stay on the bench until it was confirmed,” said Markstrom, who made a season-high 40 saves to post his first goose egg of the season.

“I just waited.

“I didn’t want to get my hopes up.

“I didn’t want to get upset and lose my head. I just wanted to stay focused.”

He did, staying perfect in the final minute of overtime before stopping three of four shots in the shootout.

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Tuesday’s win marked the first time all season a Flames netminder stole a game.

Full marks to the embattled netminder who has done well to bounce back from his season of horrors with his fourth-straight solid effort.

It’s his net for the rest of the season, and he’ll undoubtedly play the biggest role in determining whether this team can keep their playoff hopes intact.

Tuesday’s unlikely win brought the Flames to within four points of idle Winnipeg for the final wild-card berth, and ended a horrific stretch of top teams and tight turnarounds.

Anaheim visits the Flames Friday, with the hosts armed with all sorts of adrenaline following their first two-game win streak in six agonizing weeks.

Signs of life.

“Good to get some credit — his first shutout of the year and first star,” said Sutter of his netminder, who hadn’t won consecutive starts since before Christmas. “One or two rough games at home and everybody threw us under the bus, so good for him.”

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The league initiated the review of the overtime goal, but Sutter was quick to suggest the referees needed to look at it.

“Gotta have possession,” he said. “When you’re skating backwards, you’ve got to have the puck on your stick.

“The first thing I said is, ‘they gotta look at that in a hurry,’ because I don’t think it was on his stick.”

Wild coach Dean Evason agreed.

“We just looked at it — we thought it was offside,” he said. “He definitely released it before it got over the blue line by an inch. So yeah, hard to argue with that.”

Outshot 40-26 and out-chanced 17-8 in high-danger opportunities, the Flames should make no apologies for finally leaving a building with the type of result that required a bit of the puck luck they’ve so sorely lacked this season.

They stuck with it on the second half of a back-to-back that saw them travel 1,400 km overnight, to get revenge on a team that humbled them Saturday in Calgary.

It took great goaltending, as well as nerves of steel from Nazem Kadri, who needed to convert his shootout opportunity to prolong the game, and set up Toffoli’s dramatic finish.

Instead of mobbing the team’s leading goal scorer, the bench emptied and immediately raced toward Markstrom.

“Starts yesterday with a win — Toffoli with six seconds left was huge after we let them in the game again,” said Markstrom.

“Honestly, I’m so happy for him,” added Toffoli.

“Incredible guy, great teammate.

“Obviously the start of the year wasn’t his greatest, and obviously a lot of people are all over him for it, but I think he’s really stepped up, especially these last two games.

“Glad we could get him a win.”

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