TIME FOR A WIN

As I write this the Flames have overcome a wretched start and tied the Sharks 2-2 in the second period. They had better win this game.

You often hear that the exhibition season does not matter in terms of wins and losses. I would argue that it does not matter in terms of wins. Chicago, for example, had an excellent record in the pre-season last year with 7 wins. However a preseason full of losses does matter. Unfortunately I cannot access any preseason records at the moment but in terms of dressing room atmosphere and fan and media pressure (in hockey markets at least) a string of losses cannot be dismissed as unimportant. I will track the teams that end the preseason with poor records to see if this year's statistics bear out this idea.

I expect at least 3 wins in the last 4 exhibition games so that I do not have to include the Flames in this group.