Philipp Grubauer has saved a game and the flames are on the brink

It's less sexy than the Blue Jackets in Tampa, but in the west, the Avalanche are about to upset the other group, with a 3-1 lead over the Flames after a 3-2 overtime win . Colorado played well, but much of its success came from goalkeeper Philipp Grubauer, who played against Mike Smith and made the difference in the two overtime games of this series. Not that the Flames give Smith a ton of help.

Smith was the big question mark in this series, but he was pretty good, aside from an eruption in Game 3. Even in that defeat, the Avs scored 56 shots on goal. Thursday, things were not easier for him, since Colorado put 52 other pucks on goal. Despite that, Smith scored two goals without scoring before making his comeback, with Mikko Rantanen equalizing in power play in less than three minutes.

But for all, Smith kept Calgary in the game, Grubauer was just a little better for a little longer, blocking 35 of 37 shots. he at his skaters, who usually tilt the ice on the other side. "It starts with our defense," said striker J. T. Dit Compher. "We eliminate plays in our zone D and we go on the offensive. We play with the speed by the neutral and place them in their zone D. "

But at the crucial moment of the game, everything was Grubauer. At the start of extra time, Mikael Backlund found himself on the doorstep with only a Grubauer record out of position between him and the win. You have already seen this scenario a million times and very often, the skater is not able to lift the puck and rubs it frustratingly directly into the platform. But Backlund took the extra quarter of a second to set the puck and put some air in it. Unfortunately for him, Grubauer used this extra quarter of a second to raise his stack.

That would be the best chance of the Flames. A few minutes later, Carl Soderberg found Rantanen for a manual to send the fans home.

It was a nightmare night for Backlund. He was in the penalty box for Rantanen's first goal. He was on the verge of winning the match. And the winner of Rantanen was caught in his face. "It's difficult," he said. "It's hard, I've taken a bad penalty and then I've had the chance to buy me back, instead they'll score in front of me again." The night will be long. difficult. "

If Calgary can not keep up three consecutive wins now – "I do not think many people will think we can do it," Backlund said. "But we know we can do it." It will be long and a difficult summer for the Flames.