Folks, in sports coverage we throw around a lot of terms that can tend to be misused. But heading into Game 4 between the Calgary Flames and Dallas Stars on Monday night, we must ask a simple question. Based upon the club’s history and NHL playoff history more broadly, is Game 4 a “must-win” for the Flames?
(Spoiler: Yeah, probably.)
The Flames have been down 3-1 in a best-of-seven series on eight occasions. We’ve gone ahead and sorted out the outcomes:
- Lost in five games: 1983 against Edmonton, 1986 against Montreal, 2019 against Colorado
- Lost in six games: 1981 against Minnesota, 1987 against Winnipeg, 1990 against Los Angeles
- Lost in seven games: 1984 against Edmonton, 1991 against Edmonton
A couple times the Flames battled back to make the series interesting, but all eight times they went down 3-1 in a series they lost that series.