Calgary Flames are the relentless comeback kings of 2019

The Calgary Flames have had a ton of success this season. One of the reasons for this is their ability to come back from just about any deficit. 

Arguably the biggest surprise team of the 2018-19 NHL season has been the Calgary Flames. They went from a team that struggled mightily to score goals last season (26th in goal scoring) to the second-highest scoring team in the league.

The Flames already have four 20 goal scorers, the same number they had last season. Mikael Backlund and Michael Frolik are both on pace to challenge that milestone.

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And it’s not just that the Flames are scoring goals. It’s how they’re scoring them. The Flames have been a relentless team, coming back from deficits all season long.

When trailing after the first period, Calgary has won eight games. Meanwhile, they’ve lost 10 games while trailing after 20 minutes. The Flames win nearly 50 percent of the games during which they’re losing after the first period. They have the sixth-highest point percentage in the league in such situations.

Moreover, when trailing after two periods, the Flames have a 7-12-2 record when trailing after the second period. Their .333 point percentage in such situations is the third-highest in the NHL, trailing only the Tampa Bay Lightning and Montreal Canadiens. No team has won more games after trailing after two periods than Calgary.

The Flames have scored 69 goals in the third period, the most in the league. They have also scored the fourth-most goals in the first period. So the Flames are a team who start strong and finish strong. This makes them a tough team to come back against, as well as a tough team to put away.

The Flames latest comeback came on Friday night against the Florida Panthers. They trailed 1-0 after 20 minutes and an early second-period power play goal by Jonathan Huberdeau put them down 2-0. The Flames came back with two goals in under five minutes in the second period and wound up winning 4-3.

Calgary’s goaltending (most notably Mike Smith) has put them in holes early in games. Yet the Flames are relentless enough to overcome those deficits. This should serve them well in the postseason.

Of course, the Flames will need to clean up their game a little bit. After all, it’s never a good thing to be trailing. And it’s much harder to make comebacks in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But being able to overcome obstacles is a talent that champions tend to have.