Nazem Kadri scores twice in third period to rally Flames to 6-5 win over Coyotes

CALGARY, Alberta -- — Nazem Kadri scored twice in the third period, and also had an assist, as the Calgary Flames rallied to beat the Arizona Coyotes 6-5 on Sunday.

Andrei Kuzmenko, Matt Coronato, Connor Zary, and Yegor Sharangovich also scored for Calgary, which has won three of its last four games. Dustin Wolf finished with 30 saves to win his third straight start.

“There’s not too many nights where (Kadri) hasn’t factored into a game,” Flames coach Ryan Huska said. “I’m happy for the way he’s approached his season this year, he’s done a lot of great things for us.”

Kadri leads the club in scoring with 74 points, 15 points more than Yegor Sharangovich, who is second.

“He’s a competitor, he always has been. When he finds himself in a situation where someone needs to step up or grab hold of things, I think he has a sense of obligation that that person is him,” Huska said.

Dylan Guenther had two goals, and Alex Kerfoot, Matias Maccelli, and Josh Doan also scored for Arizona, which was swept in the three-game season series with the Flames. Clayton Keller had two assists.

Connor Ingram stopped 25 saves before being replace by Karel Vejmelka with 2:40 left in the third period after taking an errant stick from Coronato in the mask. Vejmelka did not face any shots.

“Too many breakdowns defensively,” Kerfoot said. “Little loose with the puck. They’re a good team in transition and they make plays off the rush.”

It was likely the Coyotes' final road game as an Arizona team. They are expected be sold to Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith shortly after team’s season finale on Wednesday and moved to Salt Lake City.

With the Flames trailing 5-4 after two periods, Kadri tied it at 1:14 of the third as he chased down a puck near the corner and sent a sharp-angle shot in between Ingram and the post.

Kadri then gave Calgary its first lead of the night when he deflected MacKenzie Weegar's point shot on the power play at 5:43 for his 29th goal of the season.

“My entire life, even in youth hockey, I’ve always tried to take pride in making my linemates better,” said Kadri. “Just communicating and having chemistry because I understand that as a unit, that team success usually leads to individual success as well.”

The latest to benefit on his line is Kuzmenko, who has nine goals and 16 points over the last nine games.

“He’s not necessarily afraid of risk, which can be a good and bad thing,” said Kadri, when asked about his talented Russian linemate. “But once you start to manage the areas of the ice, time, and score kind of thing, which comes with experience, I think that can be a heck of a tool to use, just being fearless and not being afraid to make mistakes.”

The Flames got their 10th win when trailing after 40 minutes, tied with Colorado and the New York Rangers for most in the league.

Guenther’s second of the game gave the Coyotes a 4-3 lead with 4:46 left in the second period as he sent a one-timer off a cross-ice pass from Jan Jenik.

Doan’s made it a two-goal game 1:03 later before Sharangovich followed another 33 seconds later to bring the Flames within one at 5-4.

Doan, son of longtime Coyotes great Shane Doan, has made an immediate impact in his first month in the NHL. The 22-year-old second-round pick from 2021 has five goals and nine points in his first 10 games.

The Coyotes had won four of their last five as they finish the season strong. They were 20 minutes away from going 4-1-0 on their five-game road trip.

“Our guys have showed a lot of character in the last week. Our last three games, really tight games and we pulled through two really tough games. Really proud of them,” Coyotes coach André Tourigny said.

Arizona got off to a quick start on goals 1:19 apart from Kerfoot and Maccelli for a 2-0 lead 3:55 into the game. The Coyotes held a 7-1 advantage on shots at the time.

However, Kuzmenko and Coronato scored 2:20 apart to tie it at 9:42.

Guenther’s first of the night on the power play with 2:06 left in the first gave Arizona a 3-2 lead headed to the first intermission.

Calgary again tied it at 9:07 of the second when Zary buried a setup from Dryden Hunt.

Kuzmenko, who came over from Vancouver as part of the trade return for Elias Lindholm, is up to 14 goals and 26 points in 29 games with the Flames. At the time he was acquired, he had eight goals and 21 points in 43 games with the Canucks.

UP NEXT

Coyotes: Host Edmonton on Wednesday night in their season finale.

Flames: At Vancouver on Tuesday night before returning home to host San Jose on Thursday night in the season finale.

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AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL