Calgary Flames Game Day 71: A clash at Crypto.com Arena with the Kings (8:30pm MT, SNW/960)
By Ryan Pike
1 year agoBe sure to check Betway for the latest Flames game NHL odds!
A busy week of important divisional games begins on Monday for the Calgary Flames (31-24-15, 77 points) as they head to Southern California to face the Los Angeles Kings (40-20-10, 90 points). The Kings are in the midst of a battle for top spot in the Pacific Division, while the Flames are trying to reel in Winnipeg (and out-battle Nashville) for the final Western Conference wild-card spot.
The broadcast begins at 8:30 p.m. MT on Sportsnet West and Sportsnet 960 The Fan!
The Flames
Projected lines courtesy Daily Faceoff:
Mangiapane – Lindholm – Toffoli
Huberdeau – Backlund – Coleman
Pelletier – Kadri – Dube
Ritchie – Ruzicka – Lewis
Huberdeau – Backlund – Coleman
Pelletier – Kadri – Dube
Ritchie – Ruzicka – Lewis
Weegar – Andersson
Hanifin – Tanev
Zadorov – Stecher
Hanifin – Tanev
Zadorov – Stecher
We’re expecting Jacob Markstrom to start in net, making his 10th start in a row for the Flames. He’s backed up by Dan Vladar. The extra skaters are Milan Lucic, Walker Duehr and Dennis Gilbert.
Glass half empty: the Flames lost in overtime to Dallas, giving them a league-leading 15 extra time losses this season. They scored five goals and allowed six. Glass half full: the Flames are within four points of a playoff spot and have gone on a bit of a run lately. Since their five-game losing skid, they’ve gone 4-1-2 over their past seven outings. The Flames have been playing well enough to hang around the playoff picture, but not quite good enough to pull themselves all the way into a playoff spot. (Yet.)
Needless to say, four divisional games over the next seven days – against Los Angeles, Anaheim, Vegas and San Jose – will likely decide their fate.
The Kings
Projected lines courtesy Daily Faceoff:
Byfield – Kopitar – Kempe
Moore – Danault – Arvidsson
Iafallo – Lizotte – Vilardi
Grundstrom – Kupari – MacEwen
Moore – Danault – Arvidsson
Iafallo – Lizotte – Vilardi
Grundstrom – Kupari – MacEwen
Anderson – Doughty
Gavrikov – Roy
Edler – Walker
Gavrikov – Roy
Edler – Walker
We’re projecting Pheonix Copley to start in net, backed up by Joonas Korpisalo. The expected extra skaters are Arthur Kaliyev, Jaret Anderson-Dolan and Jordan Spence. (Sean Durzi and Kevin Fiala are injured but remain on the active roster.)
Last season, the Kings were a pleasant surprise, as several of their youngsters took steps and they played a really entertaining playoff series with the Edmonton Oilers. This season, while things haven’t gone perfectly for them – case in point, they swapped out both of their season-starting goaltenders – but the Kings remain a really well-structured, talented team with a lot of good young players and several strong veterans. They’re two points back of Vegas for first place in the Pacific. This should be a very stiff test for the Flames.
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Unavailable players
The Flames are without Oliver Kylington and Michael Stone.
The Kings are without Sean Durzi and Kevin Fiala.
It’s a race!
The Flames enter Monday’s games chasing several teams:
- They’re one point ahead of Nashville for ninth place, but Nashville has two games in hand.
- They’re four points behind Winnipeg (for the final wild-card spot), and Calgary has a game in hand.
- They’re six points behind Seattle (for the first wild-card spot), but Seattle has a game in hand.
- They’re nine points behind Edmonton (for the final divisional spot).
To reach 95 points (and have a reasonable chance at a playoff spot), the Flames need 18 points over the final 12 games – that’s a .750 pace in their remaining games.
If the season ended today, by virtue of points percentage, the Flames would be drafting 14th overall (before the lottery).
The numbers
| Flames | Kings | |
| 31 | Wins | 40 |
| 77 (.550) | Points (%) | 90 (.643) |
| 55.3 | xGF% | 52.1 |
| 19.5 | PP% | 24.0 |
| 82.3 | PK% | 75.9 |
Head to head
This is game three of four between these teams this season. The Flames have won once in regulation and lost once in overtime, capturing three of four possible points. The season series concludes in Calgary on Mar. 28.
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