A flick of the shoulder and a huge grin at the end of his media chat said it all about how good Calgary Flames winger Jonathan Huberdeau is feeling so far this season.
It’s early, but a four-point game (his first as a member of the Flames) and three goals over his first two of his third season in Calgary are great signs of a bounceback season for the beleaguered NHL star.
“You didn’t see it,” he asked reporters while flicking his shoulder forward, suggesting the game’s first goal in the 6-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers was intentionally directed to the top corner.
With that, a jovial Huberdeau walked away from the scrum to echoes of laughter.
For any Flames fan hoping the franchise will finally see a glimmer of the guy they hoped they got from the Florida Panthers in the Matthew Tkachuk trade, it’s been a dream debut.
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“I think that’s the best I’ve felt the past two years. It’s early … but I was feeling good coming to training camp and worked really hard this summer to be able to be at my best,” said Huberdeau, who adjusted his training and worked with psychologists to get his confidence back.
We’re not getting carried away and predicting another 100-point season, but Huberdeau is reminding everyone that his potential is much higher than the pair of sub-60-point seasons since becoming a Flame.
Huberdeau added a second goal of his own to make it 5-3 Flames late in the third period, and also had assists on the team’s second and third scores.
The 31-year-old played 18:07 on Saturday, and Flames head coach Ryan Huska’s strategy of deploying Huberdeau on the penalty kill as well as the powerplay to keep him engaged in all facets of the game seems to be paying off. Huska said post-game that excites him more than the points — but the points have been important for a team that wasn’t expected to score many of them this season.
With a dozen goals in their first two games, including a pair on the powerplay on Saturday, Calgary looks perfectly capable.
A reinvigorated Huberdeau is a huge part of that.
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