This small change may be helping Flames forward Huberdeau get on track
Of all the things Jonathan Huberdeau has tried since joining the Calgary Flames, something as small as changing the colour of his tape may be all he needed to find his game.
Huberdeau’s confidence was shot near the end of 2023. The 30-year-old had gone 12 games without a point, and 18 without a goal. Sensing he needed something to get going, assistant coach Marc Savard chose to tape Huberdeau’s stick ahead of the Flames’ New Year’s Eve game versus the Philadelphia Flyers. Not only did he tape it for the first time, but he chose to go with black tape rather than Huberdeau’s standard white.
That very same night, Huberdeau was able to snap his pointless streak, registering the primary assist on a third-period goal scored by Dennis Gilbert. Then, in the Flames’ next game two days later, Huberdeau was able to snap his 18-game goalless drought, beating Minnesota Wild netminder Marc-Andre Fleury on what was one of his prettier goals as a Flame.
Jonathan Huberdeau finally gets a goal pic.twitter.com/U2MuuLFf3d
ā HighlightHarbor (@HighlightHarbor) January 3, 2024
“I’ve got to give credit to Savard,” Huberdeau said postgame. “He’s been taping my stick. Black tape, too. He wanted [me to give] a shout-out, so I’ve got to say it.”
Since Huberdeau’s comments, Savard was asked by reporters what made him elect to not only tape the struggling forward’s stick but also change the colour. The former NHL All-Star admitted that when he would go through struggles during his playing career, he would try to make small tweaks to get him going. As silly as it may sound, the early results have been promising.
It may only be two games, but it’s a step in the right direction for Huberdeau. His struggles and cap hit have been discussed plenty this season, as fans have been lost for answers trying to figure out what happened to the player who scored 115 points in 2021-22. Perhaps confidence was the issue the entire time, and if Savard can help him get that back, Flames fans will be singing his praises for a long time.
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