A single frantic minute in front of the Anaheim goal changed the course of the entire series. The Anaheim Ducks were just 20 minutes away from their seventh-straight postseason victory and seemingly on the verge of another playoff sweep Tuesday night at the Saddledome in Calgary.
Instead, Calgary did everything it could not do in the first two games. The Flames found all the skill and the will the Ducks had otherwise neutralized, capitalizing on Anaheim's uncharacteristic mistakes.
Following Tuesday night's 4-3 overtime loss in Game 3, the Ducks find themselves up 2-1 in a series that suddenly looks a little more even than it did back in Anaheim.
"We're playing a good team, there's no doubt about it," Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf said. "They haven't quit all year and we didn't expect that. I didn't think we played our best game tonight. We made some errors that were uncharacteristic and that's bound to happen, we're in the playoffs. It's going to happen throughout a run."
It was an exceptionally one-sided series until the errors of which Getzlaf speaks changed the momentum -- a five on three in favor of the Flames in the final minute as well as a six on four for the Flames in overtime.
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Johnny Gaudreau, the kid who had trouble holding his own against a team of big boys in Game 1, regained his Calder Cup finalist form with a game-tying 5-on-3 goal with only 20 seconds left to play. A delayed penalty in overtime gave the Flames an extra attacker that paid dividends.
Jiri Hudler screened Ducks goalie Frederik Andersen so well he had no view. Instead, he heard what happened from 15,000 fans clad in red: Mikael Backlund laced a seeing-eye shot into the net just 4:42 into the extra period.
"We did an adequate job until the last 20 seconds. That guy's got a great shot. He was right in the position he loves to be in and he's pretty accurate with it," Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau said. "(Overtime) became helter-skelter. Once we were getting the penalty and they got that extra guy on, I think it was at the end of our shift. I think our guys were tied. We stopped skating and we just sort of stayed in the same position. They scored."
The Ducks did take too many penalties -- seven minors, a few of which were debatable. But to fully place the blame on late penalties would be inaccurate. While Vatanen's delay of game penalty was arguably the costliest, there were other mistakes that didn't result in time spent in the penalty box.
"Nine out of ten times, something happens," winger Andrew Cogliano said. "Hampus (Lindholm) missed the empty net, that's another play that nine out of ten times, it goes in. That's just a game of inches in the playoffs."
Several mistakes were made after an incredibly lucky break in the third period when Sam Bennett's shot appeared to have fully crossed the goal line, but the league office in Toronto said the replays were "inconclusive" and the goal was never put on the board. It took a tremendous amount of luck and effort for the Flames to even be in a position to tie, but it would also be inaccurate to say that the Flames simply won solely based on luck.
"It's 2-1, we weren't planning on winning 16 straight games here," Cogliano said. "We knew this was going to be a tough series, we knew this was going to be a battle. Our job is to get ready for the next game and play. They played well, I thought we played a good road game. We didn't have a bad game by any means, I think we just made some plays at the wrong time and they capitalized."
The Ducks remained the leaders until that final, doomed minute. Now, they've leave town for the next two days to practice up in the mountains of Banff, Alberta, away from Calgary.
"Well, we'll go back and regroup," Boudreau said. "We didn't play very good. That's the biggest thing. We've got to play better. We can't take six, what would have been seven penalties and expect to win games. Against any team."
Game 4 coverage begins Friday, May 8 at 6:30 p.m. on NBCSN. "Ducks Live" will air at 9:30 p.m. on Prime Ticket.
