Wolf talks Flames playoff expectations, Calder Trophy possibility in Q&A with NHL.com

NEW YORK -- The Calgary Flames have no business being in the race for a Stanley Cup Playoff berth.

At least, that was the perception outside of the locker room, front office and the city of Calgary entering the season. That fed a large chip on their collective shoulders, including goalie Dustin Wolf.

The 23-year-old said earlier this month that, "everyone dogged us and didn't expect us to be here." They're two points behind the St. Louis Blues for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Western Conference with two games in hand.

The Flames ended a four-game road trip with three straight wins, including a 4-3 overtime victory at the New York Islanders on Saturday. They're not going away.

"When you come in with low expectations and come out swinging, you take people by storm," Wolf told NHL.com during a visit to the League offices Wednesday. "That's exactly what our team did from the very start, and we're still battling."

The Flames are aiming to return to the postseason for the first time since a five-game loss to the Edmonton Oilers in the 2022 Western Conference Second Round, followed by back-to-back fifth-place finishes in the Pacific Division.

It's where they sit today, except that coveted postseason berth is at their fingertips. Wolf, like most, will tell you that life in a playoff race is taking it one game at a time and every game is a must-win.

But a goal is being able to bust more than a few NHL Bracket Challenges.

"I have no doubt that if we do get in, we're going to shock some people," he said.

Wolf, a seventh-round pick (No. 214) in the 2019 NHL Draft, has a chance to be the first goalie to win the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year since Steve Mason of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2009. He's 23-14-5 in 42 games, and leads first-year goalies (minimum 15 games) in goals-against average (2.63) and save percentage (.911). Per NHL EDGE, his .840 high-danger save percentage is fourth among all NHL goalies.

He's also one of 182 goalies who have allowed at least one goal to Alex Ovechkin, the Washington Capitals captain seven away from passing Wayne Gretzky for most in NHL history with 12 games left.

Wolf was added to Ovechkin's list March 28, 2024, allowing two goals in a 5-2 Flames loss at Scotiabank Saddledome. He chuckled at the memory during a Q&A with NHL.com.

"His shot is the best I've ever seen," Wolf said. "I played one game against him last season and he put two up on us. It [stinks] but it's kind of cool to be part of the list of so many goalies that he's scored on."

In one game against Ovechkin this season, Wolf made 20 saves in a 3-1 Flames loss to the Capitals, but Ovechkin was held without a point on four shots on goal.

"This year I just tried to keep it simple. His shot's elite. Even if you're in the right spot, he's still got a really, really good chance of beating you. I describe his shot as you're flushing a golf ball. It's so flat and perfect and certainly fools you. It's been absolutely outstanding to play against him a few times already, and I have no doubt he'll get eight by the end of the season."

Wolf discussed several other topics with NHL.com, including what he thinks of his Calder Trophy candidacy, what he's learned from goalie partner Dan Vladar and how it's been playing for coach Ryan Huska:

You were pulled from a game for the first time in your NHL career, after the second period of a 6-2 loss at the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 17. The Flames arrived in New York the next day at 3 a.m. ET, and later that morning you were on the ice with goaltending coach Jason LaBarbera, taking shots and skating for 30 minutes. How did that help?

"When there's ice available you can put your nose to the grindstone a little bit more. As soon as the game ended, I spoke with 'Barbs' and said I'm going to skate in the morning, see some pucks and feel good about myself. At this time of the year, you don't practice a whole lot. Rest is a critical weapon. When you do get a chance to skate, you try to take advantage of it. Hockey can be very simple, and it can be very complicated at the same time. You try not to overthink it and just get back to the way you want to play."

With a chance at the Calder Trophy, do you allow yourself even a little time to reflect on how far you've come so quickly?

"Sure, it's cool. I always tell people that if I worry about how I'm playing, helping my team win, winning as many games as possible and helping us get to the playoffs, all that individual stuff takes care of itself. If you're helping your team win games, people are going to notice."

Another big part of your success is sharing the load and learning from Dan Vladar. What's the relationship been like and how much will the playoff push come down to goaltending when offense is at a premium?

"Our relationship has been bar none since the since the season started. We came into [training] camp pushing each other to try to earn starts and we both believe in one another to help our team win games. He's certainly been a key factor of helping me just feel comfortable and he's just a good dude. You can rely on him to bring a smile to the rink and just lighten the mood. If you have a bad outing or whatever, he's always there to pick you up. That's the kind of teammate that you want, and that's exactly what he is, so it's been a pleasure to be a partner with him. We're going to need both of us to get to the playoffs."

What would you consider some of the best moments this season?

"I think just proving people wrong is probably the No. 1 right now. It's a daily occurrence. We come into the rink and people put us on the chopping block and they expect us to lose every night against the larger teams, so when we do come out and continue to prove people wrong, it's tremendous. A game that sticks out to me is our very first of the year in Vancouver [on Oct. 9]. We were down 4-1 and ended up winning 6-5 in overtime. I think that kind of set the tone for the season right from the get-go. We might be down, but we're certainly not out. Take us lightly, and I think we can come out on top a lot of the time."

Mikael Backlund, your captain, has contributed throughout the season. So have others like Jonathan Huberdeau, Nazem Kadri and Matt Coronato. How have they impacted you and the playoff run?

"'Backs' is a super-reliable guy. If you need a draw in the last 2-3 minutes of a game, you can rely on him to win that and help us secure the win. 'Naz' and 'Huby,' they're the driving force of our hockey team. Naz has won [the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 2022]. We have guys like Ryan Lomberg, who's won [the Cup with the Florida Panthers last season], so you have that experience of they know what it takes, and that when it comes down to the stretch, they're very vocal in the room of this is what we need to do. We need to work our butts off to get into a playoff spot, and then you never know what happens.

'Matty,' boy, he's terrific. He's another young guy where I've been around him a few years now, him and [Connor Zary], those guys lighten up the room and that's exactly what you need this time of year. It's real easy to be stressed out and worried about the next game, but everybody brings a smile to their face."

Ryan Huska is in his second season as coach after being a Flames assistant the prior five. How has he acclimated to the position so quickly?

"He's brought our team to an area where we know where we need to play. We know how we need to play. We don't have necessarily a ton of offensive skilled weapons like a lot of teams do. We play to our strength of we're going to out-work teams, and we're going to out-will them to score goals. We might not score three, four or five goals a night, but we're going to win games 2-1 or 1-0 and be very happy with that. We're playing a playoff brand type of hockey pretty much the whole season, so if we get in, we're going to be well-suited for them."