Mikael Granlund delivered a stunning finish at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Thursday night, completing his hat trick with a power-play goal in the dying seconds of overtime to lift the Anaheim Ducks to a thrilling 3-2 victory over the Calgary Flames.
The Finnish forward struck with just one second remaining in the extra frame, capping off a remarkable individual performance that extended his goal-scoring streak to four games. Granlund now sits at 19 goals on the season, having found the net seven times during his current hot streak.
The victory stretched Anaheim's winning streak to four games and improved their record to 41-27-4, maintaining their grip atop the Pacific Division. The Ducks entered the evening with a five-point cushion over the Edmonton Oilers and a six-point advantage on the Vegas Golden Knights.
Flames show resilience despite setback
Despite the disappointing result, Calgary (30-34-8) extended their point streak to five games with a 4-0-1 record during that span. The Flames have shown renewed energy since making significant trades at the deadline, posting a 6-4-1 record after dealing away veterans Nazem Kadri and MacKenzie Weegar.
Rookie Matvei Gridin and veteran Blake Coleman provided the offensive punch for Calgary. Gridin's goal extended his own point streak to four games, collecting one goal and three assists during that stretch as he continues to make his mark in his first NHL season.
The game began with missed opportunities for the home side. A turnover by Anaheim's Pavel Mintyukov in the opening minute led to a 3-on-0 breakaway for Calgary, but Gridin, Morgan Frost and Matt Coronato over-passed the opportunity and failed to register a shot on goal.
Minutes later, the Flames thought they had opened the scoring when Yegor Sharangovich found the net, but Anaheim successfully challenged for offside, resulting in the goal being overturned. It marked the fifth time during Calgary's current homestand that the team had a goal waved off following video review.
Back-and-forth battle intensifies
Calgary eventually broke through 1:06 into the second period when Coleman redirected Joel Farabee's pass inside the post for what appeared to be the game-winner. However, Granlund responded just two minutes later with an unassisted tally to level the contest.
The Ducks faced adversity as they lost two defencemen to injury during the contest. Radko Gudas exited late in the second period with a lower-body injury, while Mintyukov was hurt when he took a shot from Olli Maatta high in the chest during the third period.
Calgary netminder Devin Cooley, who entered the game with a .915 save percentage that ranked second in the league behind Colorado's Scott Wedgewood (.916), stood tall throughout the evening. The goaltender made 30 saves, including several spectacular stops in the third period as Anaheim outshot Calgary 15-8.
Two of Cooley's most impressive saves came on acrobatic pad stops against dangerous chances from Anaheim's leading scorer Cutter Gauthier, keeping the Flames within striking distance.
With Calgary trailing 2-1 and less than four minutes remaining in regulation, the Ducks found the equalizer on the power play. John Carlson's slapshot was initially stopped, but the rebound bounced directly to Granlund at the side of the net, and he buried the sharp-angled opportunity to force overtime.
Ville Husso earned the victory in goal for Anaheim, making 23 saves to improve his record to 9-7-1. Cooley, despite his strong performance, fell to 9-10-4 in the loss.
The Ducks will look to extend their winning streak when they visit the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday, while the Flames will seek to bounce back from the heart-breaking defeat.
Story based on reporting by Samantha Goldstein of the Lethbridge Herald.
