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Tuesday, December 28, 1999
Flame-out!
Derek Morris couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Man, that was just brutal," he muttered afterwards. "Freddie's human. He can't stop every shot; he can't win every game.
"Want to boo somebody? Boo the rest of us. We were just crap. We gave him no help at all.
"We weren't tired. We were just awful. Sure (the fans) were frustrated. So were we. But to take it out on Freddie ... "
Morris shook his head.
"For that to happen in your own rink, for a guy who's meant as much to this team as he has ... it's embarassing."
The Brathwaite bubble burst in the third period last night, the man named Player of the Week hours earlier couldn't be player of the night against the bigger, stronger, more determined Flyers, convincing 5-1 winners.
And a good portion of the first Saddledome sellout this season jeered their hero after two poor goals allowed in an appallingly one-sided third period. A brief, weak "Fred-die ..." rebuttal chant never got up much steam.
Tough crowd, huh?
Granted, the Flames had played the night before, a stirring 2-0 win against the Canucks on the coast, but 13 shots, total, on home ice? Sorry gents, that ain't gonna get it done.
Brathwaite surrendered two more goals last night than he had in his previous five starts.
But Morris was right. Brathwaite -- no one, for that matter -- can be expected to bail the group out every night.
"I'll take the blame," the little goalie murmurred. "That's hockey. I'm not going to say anything about (the booing). Hopefully I can play better next time and get them back on my side.
"We were tied 1-1 going into the third period. We needed this game because Edmonton and Colorado were playing and we could've maybe passed them. And I wasn't good enough. A frustrating evening for me."
If Brathwaite caved in the third, his buddies had been threatening to fold their tent much earlier. Only two posts and sub-par Flyer finishing kept the Flames in this as long as they stayed.
So the chance to reach the .500 mark evaporated. So, too, did the potential chance to vault atop the Northwest Division.
"They looked fresher," said Calgary coach Brian Sutter. "We had the puck on their first and second goals and gave it away. They smelled blood and really came after us."
Flyer defenceman Eric Desjardins snapped a 1-1 tie 5:39 into the third, gloving down a horrible giveaway, right up through the throat of the ice by Andrei Nazarov -- yes, Mr. Nazarov, that's your seat, No. 101, at the end of the press box -- and rifling a shot that left Brathwaite no chance.
That was followed in quick succession by a John LeClair stuff from the side that the Flame goalie lost track of; and two through the old five-hole, including one from a different time zone off the stick of a gleeful Sandy McCarthy.
"I still thought he played a helluva game," said LeClair, who enjoyed a three-point (2G, 1A) night. "They just played back-to-back. Maybe he was a little tired."
Bunk, countered Brathwaite.
"For me to be tired midway through December ... " He shook his head in disgust. "Sorry, that's just not a good enough excuse. We play every second night. I'm not tired."
Despite being outworked and outshot through the first period, Calgary managed to lumber off to the dressing room actually enjoying a lead. In that period, Brathwaite not only looked good, he looked blessed.
But a maddening 12 seconds into the second period, LeClair fired a passout from behind the net and Mark Recchi did not A) miss the net; B) hit a post; or C) have the puck skip over his stick. He buried it.
Flames had forged ahead on their first shot, compliments Marc Savard.
The third period was an unqualified disaster. Outshot 13-4, Calgary was outscored 4-0.
"They just coming at us and coming at us," sighed defenceman Tommy Albelin. "Only Freddie kept us close in the first two periods.
"They're a big team, a heavy team, they wear you down. Lindros. LeClair. Brind'Amour. They've got a big defence. But we just didn't play very well tonight.
"We put together a real good run. It's over.
"Now the job is to get another one started right away."
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