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Huska had the Calgary Flames FIRED UP before last night's game

Colton Pankiw
Colton Pankiw
|
Feb 26 2025, 6:10 pm
Huska had the Calgary Flames FIRED UP before last night's game
@NHLFlames/X

A good NHL coach knows how to prepare his team for game action, and Ryan Huska has certainly been able to do that for the Calgary Flames.

Huska has been able to squeeze everything possible out of this Flames group, who currently occupy a wild-card spot through 57 games thanks to a 28-21-8 record. It’s an impressive feat for a team most expected to be at the bottom of the NHL standings.

The head coach has done a phenomenal job of getting his team to give their best effort night in and night out. Last night, he did just that by giving his fourth line of Kevin Rooney, Ryan Lomberg, and Martin Pospisil the start, which had the entire group fired up ahead of puck drop.

“I need a line that’s going to f*cking get a forecheck going and I need a pair that’s going to get a f*cking forecheck going and get pucks in deep for us. Who is it? It’s f*cking Roon Dog,” Huska exclaimed to a loud Flames dressing room.

The Flames’ fourth line hasn’t been used a ton this season, and it was clear in their reaction that they were caught off guard by the decision.

“I thought he was baiting us for a second,” quipped a grinning Lomberg.

Whatever Huska’s hunch was for this decision paid off, as his fourth line opened the scoring around the midway point of the first period.

The Flames were able to carry on with the momentum and beat a very good Capitals team by a 3-1 final.

These behind-the-scene moments give some insight as to why Huska has continued to stick with a guy like Rooney despite objections from many outsiders. His on-ice results have been lacking at times this season, but the video above shows how well-liked he is by his teammates.

Morale is often tough to measure, though it seems Huska has done a great job at creating plenty of it this season, and it’s resulted in plenty of success.

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