In recent years, the Calgary Flames were a team that went away. They went away when things got too physical. They went away when the game required hockey smarts and mental toughness. They went away when they didn't get a timely save or a lucky bounce.

The Flames haven't qualified for the postseason since 1996 and haven't won a playoff series since winning the Stanley Cup in 1989. Last year, they skulked so low in the division standings they finished ahead of only expansion Minnesota.

This year, the Flames are finally standing tall. By the end of Monday night, they stood atop the entire league with 15 points. Led by rookie coach Greg Gilbert, they're going into the corners, toughing out penalties, and fighting over every inch of ice.

They upped their Northwest Division-leading record to 7-1-0-1 with a 3-2 win in St. Louis on Monday. If you're counting, the Flames already have chalked up impressive road victories in Detroit, Dallas and St. Louis, places where visiting teams go to get whipped.

Why the sudden turn for the tough in Calgary? The short answer is goalie Roman Turek. After being unfairly scapegoated by the Blues' management and coaching staff, Turek was sent north in a draft day deal. Feeling wanted and needed in Calgary, "Large" has responded by allowing just nine goals in his first eight games. With a 7-0-0-1 record, Turek has yet to suffer a regulation loss.

Calgary GM Craig Button acquired Turek because G Fred Brathwaite (who went to the Blues in the Turek deal) wasn't good enough or consistent enough to help the Flames get to another level. Button, who helped scout and draft Turek for the Minnesota North Stars in 1990, felt Turek could backbone his team. So far, Button's assessment has been dead on.

The longer answer, though, stretches far beyond their oversized goalie. It goes to why Button made moves to acquire Craig Conroy, Rob Niedermayer and Bob Boughner. It goes to the competitive heart of the team.

In his first half-season on the job, Button witnessed too many mailed-in games. Too many lost battles along the wall and in the slot. Too many lost scrums for loose pucks. Disgusted, he knew he needed to remake the team. So, he moved out soft, one-way players like Val Bure and Phil Housley, replacing them with the grittier likes of Conroy and Boughner.

He fired his first head coach, Don Hay, in less than a full season because he realized it wasn't going to work out. He promoted Gilbert, who was probably the guy he should have hired in the first place.

A successful minor league coach, Gilbert has raised the bar in the locker room. He has sold his club on the idea of working hard within the system. A former NHLer who played for both Al Arbour and Mike Keenan, Gilbert seems to have a good understanding what it takes to be successful night after night at the NHL level.

Led by their newly-imported clubhouse leaders, the players have bought in. Guys are going to battle for one another. Eventually, tough, these Flames will face strong winds. The second half of the season features a grueling nine-game road trip scheduled for March.

But, unlike in past seasons, this bunch seems ready for the nitty gritty. In the end, the Flames still may not have enough to get to the postseason. But for the first time in a long while, it won't be for a lack of trying. For Button, Gilbert and Co., the battle to hang tough has already been won.

E.J. Hradek writes puck for ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at ej.hradek@espnmag.com.