Sharangovich's late-season surge powering Flames at opportune time

One of the Calgary Flames’ highest-paid forwards changed his pre-game meal, and in the process, changed the trajectory of his – and possibly the team’s – season.

Calgary won again on Sunday night at the Saddledome, a 5-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks that kept their playoff hopes alive. Yegor Sharangovich, snakebitten all season, scored twice, including the eventual game-winner early in the third period. After scoring just two goals in the entire month of March, Sharangovich has found the back of the net four times in the past three games when his team has needed him most.

Postgame, teammate Jonathan Huberdeau revealed a possible reason for his teammate’s resurgence.  

“He’s been eating salmon,” Huberdeau said.

“It’s been helping him, the risotto and salmon. He’s gonna eat it until the end of the year…[before], it was chicken and pasta.”

Sharangovich smirked when asked about the change.

“It’s true,” he said.

“Fish is light.”

He said it wasn’t his idea.

“My wife told me, ‘You should try something different.’” 

“I tried it once and it worked. Good. Keep it.”

Blueliner MacKenzie Weegar said that a subtle change like that can actually make a big difference to a player who’s going through a tough time.

“He’s confident right now,” Weegar said.

“Honestly, when you change something like that, [it's actually good] for a hockey player, it does go a long way. Now he’s got that in his routine. It might have changed something mentally for him. But he’s flying right now.”

They were outshot 7-0 early on and allowed the game’s first score. Weegar got a huge goal to tie it, and the teams traded goals before Calgary pulled away thanks to Sharangovich. Weegar is the emotional leader on a club still in the postseason conversation going into their 81st game on Tuesday versus the Vegas Golden Knights. 

Calgary started slow in a game it absolutely had to have. The Flames are two points back of St. Louis and three back of Minnesota, with a game in hand on both clubs. They have two games left in their 2024-25 schedule, while the Blues and Wild each have one to go.

“I thought it was a great start,” Weegar said with a sarcastic smile.

“I thought we were sleepy to start the period. Wolfie does what he does, kept us in that first period.”

Weegar’s eight goals this season are down from last year’s total of 20, but he has been just as valuable on and off the ice.

“It was nice to contribute in that area, scoring a timely goal, making a play,” he said.

“I hadn’t done that in a while. Just for myself, it was nice to contribute there, wake everybody up, maybe guys can relax a little after a shaky start.”

Weegar and head coach Ryan Huska each used the words poise and resilient on several occasions to describe this version of the team. They are fifth in the NHL with nine third-period comeback wins and 13th with 86 third-period goals. The Flames are also sixth with 18 one-goal victories.

“There’s a lot of poise,” Weegar said of the mood in the Flames’ locker room during the second intermission of a must-win game. 

“Everybody’s pretty calm. I wouldn’t say everybody’s loose, but everybody’s talking to each other [about] what needs to be done better. But we’re so confident in the third period of a tight game right now. We’ve been in that situation so many times.”

It took some time for Sharangovich to find his form this season, but he’s been crucial to their efforts lately. 

Expectations increased after he signed a $28.75 million extension over the summer that doesn’t kick in until next season. At times, he’s looked lost. Recently, however, he’s elevated his game during the most important stretch of hockey for the franchise in three years. 

“He makes us a more dangerous team, depth-wise,” Huska said.

“He’s a threat to score now. So when he’s on the ice, you have to be aware of him, for one. I feel when he’s playing the way he is now, that any time the puck’s on his stick, he’s got the ability to score. He’s got the ability to make a play that can change a game. And tonight, he did that.”

Sharangovich, who notched his 100th career goal on Sunday night, said he’s continued to have the same approach through the ups and downs – beyond his pre-game meal, of course. 

“I [have] done the same job all year,” he said. “Now, I [am] just starting [to] score goals.”

The revelation of Sharangovich’s new pre-game routine illustrates how much the Flames’ tight-knit culture has propelled them to this playoff chase. Weegar, Huberdeau, Sharangovich, and even Huska joked about it afterwards. The Flames play for one another, as opposed to with one another. 

For the coach, Sharangovich’s switch also showed that he was dedicated to finding his game again – using whatever means necessary.

"To me, that's a care thing, like, 'I've got to do whatever I can to get myself back on track,” Huska said.

“So if he went to salmon and risotto, then he should stay with salmon and risotto."