Flames' goalie Dan Vladar on verge of matching club's franchise record
Dan Vladar can scribble his way into the Calgary Flames record books.
All he needs is just one more win… or an overtime or shootout loss.
That’s because the 25-year-old crease keeper has gone unbeaten in regulation in 12 straight games by way of a 9-0-3 mark, one off the franchise mark of 13 set by Mike Vernon in 1988-89 and equalled by Brian Elliott’s run in 2016-17.
“Obviously, it’s good, but I’m not trying to focus on those stats,” Vladar told Wes Gilbertson of Postmedia on Tuesday. “I’m just taking every game as a brand-new opportunity to get a point or get those two points. For me, I’m not thinking that I want to be going on a streak. I just want to play hockey. I just want to win and do my best, and that’s all I’m really focused on.”
It’s a strategy that’s worked well for the second-year Flames goalie.
Vladar, who made 19 starts and 23 appearances as Jacob Markstrom’s understudy in 2021-22, is already up to 16 starts and 18 games this season.
He sports a 2.75 goals-against average and .904 save percentage in those outings, topping the 2.86 goals-against average and .893 save percentage sported by Markstrom — last year’s runner-up in the Vezina Trophy voting.
“He’s been great,” said teammate Noah Hanifin, who patrols the space in front of Vladar. “He’s such a good teammate and he’s so positive as a guy. I met him last year, and just the way he’s grown as a player has been awesome to see. He’s been a huge part of our success this year. We’ve needed him to come up with big saves at times and he’s done it consistently. I’m happy to see him having success this year. He’s such a great guy. He’s awesome.
“He’s a vocal guy. He’s always in a really good mood. He’s a very positive guy to have around the room. Even if things aren’t going too well, it’s nice to have a teammate that’s always going to bring a smile and positive attitude to the rink every day. He really works hard, too.”
Vladar’s milestone night could come as early as Friday evening.
Markstrom made 24 saves in a 5-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday, paving the way for Vladar to start the second of back-to-back games when the team visits the Seattle Kraken to close out the pre-All-Star portion of its schedule.
Not that Vladar’s focused on the 13th game of his run, however.
He’s just looking at the two points.
“I don’t think they care if I’m on a streak or not,” Vladar told Gilbertson. “For me, every game is a new game, and I just have to perform the best I can and do everything I can to get a W.”
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