Milestones hit in Battle of Alberta
23.01.06 23:00MST
Iginla hits 600 points and Guerin plays 1000th game
The Calgary Flames hit the road this evening in Edmonton and came away with an ugly 9-6 win over the Edmonton Oilers which saw a lot of penalties, goals and milestones for all those involved.
Longtime veteran Bill Guerin of the Edmonton Oilers celebrated his 1000th game in the NHL at the start of the hockey game with a short opening announcement. And then the puck dropped, and the game then belonged to Flames Captain Jarome Iginla (pictured) who played perhaps his best game of the season, with 4 goals and 6 points, against the provincial rivals.
"It was ugly out there." Said Iginla with a laugh. "Lot's of goals. Lot's of gritted teeth. We really hate each other." Iginla scored 3 of his 4 goals with the man-advantage and had completed his hat-trick mid-way through the second period. The Captain currently leads the Flames with 35 goals and 72 points in just 48 games. He has 19 more points than Brad Richards who sits second in team scoring with 15 goals and 53 points.
"To get 600 points in this league is an honour. It is an honour and a privilege to play in this league, with these teammates and in front of these fans." Said the Flames Captain.
On the other side of the building, Bill Guerin was equally thankful. "I'm a lucky man. I've had the benefit of playing in a market that lives and breaths this team. 1000 games is a long time, but it's flown by. I just wish we would've won the game."
In the 15 goal affair, the Flames at one point had a 6-0 lead, but Edmonton could never close the deficit anymore than to 3 goals. Other notables included 11 different Flames players registering at least one point, 7 of which registered a multipoint game. 10 separate Oilers registered at least one point, with 5 registering more than one. 10 powerplay goals were shared between the two teams, 7 for Calgary and 3 for Edmonton spread across 23 opportunities. Calgary took 25 minutes in penalties to Edmonton's colossal 52 minutes. And Calgary took 49 shots on net to Edmonton's 23.
This was the 6th meeting between these two teams with Calgary holding the slight edge at 4 wins to 2. There remains 2 more games, giving Edmonton a chance to tie the series. The next Battle of Alberta is March 16th, in Edmonton.
The Flames currently sit 2nd in the Conference with a 31-12-5 record. Edmonton continues to struggle with in 12th with a dismal 17-25-7 record.