"Nowhere to go but up" is the theme on the radio today. I hope they're right, although if you're counting, that's 5 straight losses, and 3.5 of those games mattered. Watching last night's game, though, it certainly could have been worse. How? Let me count the ways.

1) Kipper was outstanding; his lateral movement was so quick, you'd have thought it was his 5th start of the year, not his 75th. If he was merely solid, the score would have been 7-0 after 40.

2) Phaneuf was handling the puck with all the dexterity of a blind man going through DTs. I'm stunned that he wasn't on the ice for a Wings goal; that's good luck and nothing more. I'm also shocked that he recorded 2 shots on goal -- I could have sworn that every single shot he attempted was blocked.

3) Same idea: if Iginla and Huselius handled the puck in the 3rd the way they did in the 1st and 2nd, there's no PP goal, and at least one more goal against.

4) Since it had no effect on the outcome, I don't know that you could call the reffing "atrocious", but it was very poor, and virtually all the bad calls (and non-calls) were to the Flames' benefit. The holding call on Zetterberg was a joke; the tripping call on Samuelsson was even worse. I have no problem calling the Goalie Interference penalty on Cleary, even though it was minor and pretty much accidental; however, how the Flames emerged from that whole scuffle with a powerplay (and how Stuart only got 2mins) is a mystery. (Note: that's one thing you can say for Phaneuf -- the man knows how to get his money's worth out of a 2min roughing penalty. The consequences, all-around, for slugging Zetterberg in the face could have been a lot more serious.)

5) Zyuzin could have mishandled the puck and turned a 2-on-2 into a Datsyuk breakaway where he scored. Langkow... never mind. He couldn't possibly have been less effective.

6) Someone else could have gotten injured.

7) It could have been Game 7.

That's the biggest silver lining, really. It was Game 1. Things for Flames fans to pin their hopes on?

1) I know the Wings scored 2 PP goals (only 1 officially), but going forward, I think special teams play looks like Advantage: Flames. The 3rd period PP where they scored was, subjectively speaking, the most effective PP by either team on the night; I know it's his specialty, but Schneider's not going to pot one of those seeing-eye goals every game; and the Lidstrom goal was an unlucky carom.

2) Tanguay looked pretty good all night, I thought, and it looked like Iginla and Huselius were starting to come around a bit later on. They will create more scoring chances in future games; the only question is if it'll be enough.

3) Regehr might come back, at least for Game 3. As fans in these parts know, losing your #1 D-man has a ripple effect, as every guy down the line is asked to do a bit more, and some fail.

4) There's still at least two games in the Saddledome.

5) Babcock might actually insert Bertuzzi for Game 2 -- in place of whom I don't know -- and who knows what happens to the Wings' applecart in that event.

6) Giordano might draw in and make some stuff happen. (Or McCarty -- surely he can take Ritchie's 6 shifts without sacrificing much.)

7) Now Datsyuk isn't due to score again until 2012.

Go Flames.