The Calgary Flames and Columbus Blue Jackets entered Nationwide Arena in Columbus with emotion-filled hearts and minds. Johnny Gaudreau&#8217;s tragic passing over the summer sent shockwaves through the hockey community and both organizations, making this first meeting between the two clubs a highly anticipated one.
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2109" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="328"></div>
The emotion spilled into the game, with multiple fights and skirmishes occurring between the two sides. And when the final horn sounded, the Flames did not come out on top, falling 5-2 in the first of two meetings within the week.
Blake Coleman scored the first of the two Flames goal on a rebound chance in the second period. But despite his individual tally on the scoresheet, he knew that the effort from (almost) everyone was not up to the standard that has been set by the management team and coaching staff.
&#8220;There were some individual efforts that we&#8217;re proud of and guys that stepped up to the plate who took care of each other and [our] teammates,&#8221; <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8OVywxNZEg">Coleman said following the game, via Flames TV</a>. &#8220;We didn&#8217;t do enough, the rest of us, to make it matter, but it goes a long way in our room. We&#8217;re going to flush [the result], and we don&#8217;t have a choice but to be a lot better tomorrow and try to get three of eight [points] on the road.&#8221;
One of the individual efforts that Coleman was referring to was Ryan Lomberg, who stepped up to fight Mathieu Olivier after Olivier laid a huge hit from behind on Joel Hanley.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Ryan Lomberg drops the gloves with Mathieu Olivier! <a href="https://twitter.com/hockeyfights?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hockeyfights</a>
🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/srjWvedqMU">pic.twitter.com/srjWvedqMU</a>
— FlamesNation (@FlamesNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FlamesNation/status/1862615356994724229?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2024</a></blockquote>
The fight resulted in multiple stitches for Lomberg, but it sent a good message to his teammates that he would be willing to take on punishment for the betterment of the team.
&#8220;He&#8217;s one of those team guys who is always there for everybody in the room and always has energy and positivity,&#8221; Coleman said. &#8220;If him stepping up there doesn&#8217;t lift you up, then you&#8217;ve got something wrong with you. We&#8217;re proud of him, and like I said, it&#8217;s a shame we couldn&#8217;t honor him stepping up with a good result.&#8221;
While the effort of individual players like Lomberg and Martin Pospisil, who also stepped up to fight Olivier and laid his body on the line for his teammates, should be commended, the result is what&#8217;s important at the end of the day. Following a four-game win streak at home, the Flames are moving on to Pittsburgh after three straight losses on the road. And if Calgary wants to end the road trip and the month of November with a win, the overall effort, along with the killer instinct to finish on the chances they create, has to be better.
&#8220;This is just one of those moments where it&#8217;s on each guy,&#8221; Coleman said. &#8220;Every guy in this room needs to be better tomorrow. It&#8217;s one of those things where you look inside, see what you did, and change whatever you need to to be better from the drop tomorrow. These are games that we need to start taking care of on the road if we want to be taken seriously as a playoff team. It&#8217;s early, but it&#8217;s never too early to keep trying to climb the standings. Good teams find a way to stop the bleeding.&#8221;
Every team will have stretches of poor play across an 82-game season. However, the road record has been a huge issue for the Flames through early 2024-25. Finding a way to fall back on the system that makes Calgary a formidable opponent at home is something the team needs to establish before heading home to play Columbus again in what is sure to be another heated game on Dec. 3.

The Calgary Flames and Columbus Blue Jackets entered Nationwide Arena in Columbus with emotion-filled hearts and minds. Johnny Gaudreau's tragic passing over the summer sent shockwaves through the hockey community and both organizations, making this first meeting between the two clubs a highly anticipated one.
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2109" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="328"></div>
The emotion spilled into the game, with multiple fights and skirmishes occurring between the two sides. And when the final horn sounded, the Flames did not come out on top, falling 5-2 in the first of two meetings within the week.

Blake Coleman scored the first of the two Flames goal on a rebound chance in the second period. But despite his individual tally on the scoresheet, he knew that the effort from (almost) everyone was not up to the standard that has been set by the management team and coaching staff.

"There were some individual efforts that we're proud of and guys that stepped up to the plate who took care of each other and [our] teammates," <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8OVywxNZEg">Coleman said following the game, via Flames TV</a>. "We didn't do enough, the rest of us, to make it matter, but it goes a long way in our room. We're going to flush [the result], and we don't have a choice but to be a lot better tomorrow and try to get three of eight [points] on the road."

One of the individual efforts that Coleman was referring to was Ryan Lomberg, who stepped up to fight Mathieu Olivier after Olivier laid a huge hit from behind on Joel Hanley.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Ryan Lomberg drops the gloves with Mathieu Olivier! <a href="https://twitter.com/hockeyfights?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hockeyfights</a>
🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/srjWvedqMU">pic.twitter.com/srjWvedqMU</a>

— FlamesNation (@FlamesNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FlamesNation/status/1862615356994724229?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2024</a></blockquote>
The fight resulted in multiple stitches for Lomberg, but it sent a good message to his teammates that he would be willing to take on punishment for the betterment of the team.

"He's one of those team guys who is always there for everybody in the room and always has energy and positivity," Coleman said. "If him stepping up there doesn't lift you up, then you've got something wrong with you. We're proud of him, and like I said, it's a shame we couldn't honor him stepping up with a good result."

While the effort of individual players like Lomberg and Martin Pospisil, who also stepped up to fight Olivier and laid his body on the line for his teammates, should be commended, the result is what's important at the end of the day. Following a four-game win streak at home, the Flames are moving on to Pittsburgh after three straight losses on the road. And if Calgary wants to end the road trip and the month of November with a win, the overall effort, along with the killer instinct to finish on the chances they create, has to be better.

"This is just one of those moments where it's on each guy," Coleman said. "Every guy in this room needs to be better tomorrow. It's one of those things where you look inside, see what you did, and change whatever you need to to be better from the drop tomorrow. These are games that we need to start taking care of on the road if we want to be taken seriously as a playoff team. It's early, but it's never too early to keep trying to climb the standings. Good teams find a way to stop the bleeding."

Every team will have stretches of poor play across an 82-game season. However, the road record has been a huge issue for the Flames through early 2024-25. Finding a way to fall back on the system that makes Calgary a formidable opponent at home is something the team needs to establish before heading home to play Columbus again in what is sure to be another heated game on Dec. 3.

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Calgary Flames center Mikael Backlund (11) celebrates the goal scored by center Nazem Kadri (91) in the game against the Columbus Blue Jackets in the third period at Nationwide Arena.

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