Flames rally for second straight win with Huberdeau on the bench

In one of the biggest victories of the Flames’ 2023-24 season, Jonathan Huberdeau, the highest-paid player in franchise history, was parked on the bench for the entire final period.

On Tuesday evening at the Saddledome, the Flames (4-7-1) rallied from two goals down to stun the Nashville Predators 4-2, thanks to three third-period goals from Noah Hanifin, Blake Coleman and Nazem Kadri and another solid outing from goalie Jacob Markstrom, who stopped 17 of 19 shots.

Huberdeau, in the first year of an eight-year, $84 million extension, did not see any ice time in the final frame. He ended the night with 14:24 of ice time, 12th among the 18 Flames skaters. He has just two assists in his last five games and six points, including two goals, in 12 games this season.

Head coach Ryan Huska chalked it up to the forward simply not having his A- game. 

“I thought Huby had an off night and when we went into the third period, we wanted to try have a little more flow,” the coach said.

“We went with the guys that we felt were going and that’s pretty much all…you’re not going to have your A-plus game every night…we were trying to find a little bit of rhythm [and] flow to our game. At that point, we went with guys we thought were going the best.”

It’s easy to see why the Flames coaching staff came to the conclusion that Huberdeau simply wasn’t ‘on’ versus the Predators. He gave the puck away several times, was part of a top power play unit that seemed to take away momentum from the team, and got outmuscled off the puck on a couple of occasions.

He’s had a difficult second season in Calgary and not shown the offensive flash many expected after Huska and assistant coach Marc Savard took over from former head coach Darryl Sutter. Tuesday evening was a gutsy call by the first-year head coach to bench one of the most powerful players in the organization. 

“You want everybody to know that if they’re doing things the right way and they’re having their best game, they’re going to play,” Huska said.

Huberdeau didn’t speak to reporters afterwards but is an easygoing, well-liked teammate who has taken young players under his wing. He’s constantly answered questions and made himself available publicly in Calgary.

While sitting on the bench in the third period, he remained engaged and celebrated goals with teammates. 

"Huby’s the man,” said Dillon Dube, who opened the scoring for the Flames in the second period to cut Nashville’s lead to 2-1. 

“He’s good. He’s the most positive guy I’ve been around and he’s a hell of a player and a hell of a person. It’s fine.”

“He’s celebrating and he’s excited for the team,” Coleman said of the 30-year-old Huberdeau.

“Team guy through and through."

Huberdeau’s benching overshadowed a second consecutive victory for the Flames. Their play improved as the game went along and they thoroughly outskated the Predators in the final frame. 

“Keep building, keep grinding,” Dube said, of the message between the second and third periods.

“Nobody got down, everybody kept grinding away,” Coleman said.

“It took us a while to get the lead but once we did, I thought it was a great third period…it wasn’t one guy. It was a collective effort.”

Another huge positive was another star’s play rounding into form. Kadri, who started off the season with one assist in his first eight games, now has six points in his last four games. His line with Yegor Sharangovich and rookie Connor Zary had over three-quarters of the shots when on the ice while generating eight scoring chances. 

“He’s playing with confidence, he’s making plays,” Huska said.

“Naz feels like he can take [Zary] under his wing…he’s kind of enjoying that role. Having Sharangovich there, this is the best we’ve seen him play.”

The Flames head on the road through Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal starting Friday, where surely Huberdeau’s benching will overshadow the team’s recent success. 

The organization is downplaying it and Huska said Huberdeau would resume his normal place in the lineup. But his performance in 90-plus games in Calgary is still leaving something to be desired. They can’t continue waiting for him to become the player they thought they were acquiring from the Florida Panthers two summers ago.

Despite those struggles, however, teammates and the coach have Huberdeau’s back and feel that Tuesday night’s benching will be an isolated incident.

“It’s one period out of his life and out of his career,” Dube said. 

“It’s not a big deal."