Calgary Flames Game Day 61: The powerhouse Bruins visit the ‘Dome (7pm MT, SNW/SN1/960)

Photo credit:© Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

1 year ago

Be sure to check Betway for the latest Flames game NHL odds!

After a three game road trip that saw them return home with three points, the Calgary Flames (27-21-12, 66 points) are in a position where they really, really need to go on a bit of a run here. They’re facing a couple tough opponents between now and the trade deadline, starting with the Boston Bruins (46-8-5, 97 points), a team that’s quite simply very good at the sport of ice hockey.

The broadcast begins at 7 p.m. MT on Sportsnet West, Sportsnet One and Sportsnet 960 The Fan!

The Flames

Projected lines courtesy Daily Faceoff:

Dube – Lindholm – Toffoli
Pelletier – Kadri – Huberdeau
Mangiapane – Backlund – Coleman
Lucic – Lewis – Duehr

Weegar – Andersson
Hanifin – Tanev
Zadorov – Gilbert

We’re projecting Dan Vladar to start in net, backed up by Jacob Markstrom. The expected extras are Connor Mackey, Adam Ruzicka and Brett Ritchie.

Since the All-Star Break, the Flames are 3-4-3. And they haven’t played badly. They’re first in Corsi For percentage, first in Shot For percentage, third in Expected Goals For percentage, second in Scoring Chances For percentage, 12th in High-Danger Chances For percentage, 21st in shooting percentage and 31st in save percentage (all via Natural Stat Trick). The first few percentages are really impressive, and the last three probably explain to you why they’re outside of a playoff spot right now.

The clock is working against the Flames now, and they need to go on a run if they want to have a realistic shot at the playoffs.

The Bruins

Projected lines courtesy Daily Faceoff:

Marchand – Bergeron – DeBrusk
Zacha – Krejci – Pastrnak
Foligno – Coyle – Frederic
Greer – Nosek – Hathaway

Orlov – McAvoy
Lindholm – Carlo
Forbort – Clifton

In the second half of a back-to-back, we’re projecting Linus Ullmark to start in goal and Jeremy Swayman to back up. The Bruins are rotating blueliners, with Jakub Zboril and Matt Grzelcyk the extras against Edmonton. (We’ll see if either rotates in.) Taylor Hall is back in Boston and out day-to-day with a minor injury.

Man, the Bruins are freakin’ good. They’ve won seven games in a row, with their last loss coming back on Feb. 11 against Washington. They’ve lost in regulation just eight times this season. They’ve never rattled off consecutive regulation losses. They’re deep, they’re well-coached, and they just added Garnet Hathaway and Dmitri Orlov. Heck, Ullmark scored a goal in his last outing.

This is a team with legit Stanley Cup aspirations, and their performance very much backs up those hopes.

Flames Game Day content is presented by Betway!

Unavailable players

The Flames are without Oliver Kylington and Michael Stone.

The Bruins are without Taylor Hall.

It’s a race!

The Flames enter Tuesday’s games chasing a few teams:

They’re four points behind Seattle (for the second wild-card spot), but Seattle has a game in hand.
They’re five points behind Winnipeg (for the first wild-card spot).
They’re six points behind Edmonton (for the third Pacific Division spot), and the Flames have a game in hand.

Nashville is two points behind the Flames, and they have three games in hand.