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Six straight losses have Flames lamenting the turning of the tide

Karri Ramo

Calgary Flames goalie Karri Ramo, from Finland, lets in a goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers in Calgary, Alberta, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2014. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jeff McIntosh)

AP

From the Calgary Herald’s George Johnson, after the Flames lost their sixth straight last night, falling 5-2 to the Rangers at home:

Reality, we’re oft told, bites.

Well, if anyone doubted it, check out those bicuspid marks in the soft, fleshy parts of the Calgary Flames right now.

They’re deep. They hurt like hell. And the infection, if left unchecked much longer, will spread to all the vital organs.

Might be time for a tetanus shot.

So yeah, the good times have ended in Calgary. Now on the outside looking in at a playoff spot, the Flames are left to lament the turning of the tide.

“When we were winning games, it seemed those chances against would not go in,” said captain Mark Giordano. “Now, especially tonight, they buried their chances.”

The Flames aren’t dead yet though, just as the Toronto Maple Leafs weren’t dead after that 9-2 home loss to Nashville, despite the many eulogies that were penned. The Leafs are 10-1-1 since. Momentum can change.

Calgary hosts Dallas Friday, then plays in Vancouver Saturday.

As Johnson concludes:

In startling the hockey world through the first 25 games, these Flames provided themselves enough cushion in the standings to at least partially withstand a tailspin of these dimensions and built up a tonne of good will.

But they need to end this swoon. Or else.