FGD 31: The Battle of Alberta Rematch (7pm MT, SN West)

Less than a full day after their big win over Nashville, the Calgary Flames (19-9-2, 40 points) are facing another big test as they head up Highway 2 to face the Edmonton Oilers (15-12-2, 32 points) in the second Battle of Alberta of the 2018-19 season. Their first meeting this season was a tremendously entertaining, spirited affair.

The action kicks off at 7 p.m. MT on Sportsnet West and Sportsnet 960 The Fan!

Projected lines, via Daily Faceoff:

David Rittich most likely starts for the Flames, backed up by Mike Smith – though we’re waiting official word on tonight’s starter. The projected healthy scratches are Austin Czarnik and Rinat Valiev, while Mark Giordano serves the final game of his suspension. Ryan Lomberg is in the AHL, so his NHL suspension is frozen until he’s eventually called back up to the big leagues.

The Flames are one of the hottest teams in the entire NHL, with an 8-1-1 record in their last 10 games. They’re 14-4-2 since their Oct. 25 drubbing at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins and, to their credit, really haven’t taken many nights off in that span. If the question is “Who are the Calgary Flames?”, we might be at the point of the season where we can say this is what they are.

They may be vulnerable to line matching give their injuries and suspensions – particularly given that Ken Hitchcock can put Connor McDavid or Ryan Nugent-Hopkins out against Dalton Prout or Anthony Peluso – but 80% of their roster is pretty formidable these days. If the Flames can work around their limitations, which may amount to stapling Prout and Peluso to the bench for much of the evening, they should have a fighting chance for two more points.

Projected lines, via Daily Faceoff:

Mikko Koskinen starts for the Oilers, backed up by Cam Talbot. Their extras are Chris Wideman, Jason Garrison and Cooper Marody.

The Oilers have won three of their last four dating back to the beginning of December. They’re also seemingly finding their offensive swagger, as they just drubbed the Minnesota Wild by a 7-2 score on Friday night – their top line is really starting to gel nowadays.

Their key to victory is likely maintaining their composure and playing a structured game. If they get more focused on sending messages to the likes of Matthew Tkachuk (or Peluso and Prout) instead of trying to out-work a skilled Flames team, they might lose this one.

The Flames are without Mikael Backlund, Juuso Valimaki, Michael Frolik and Michael Stone.

The Oilers are without Tobias Rieder, Andrej Sekera and Drake Caggiula.

This is the second of four Battles of Alberta in 2018-19. The Flames beat Edmonton 4-2 back on Nov. 17. They’ll play again Jan. 19 in Edmonton and then Apr. 6 in Calgary on the final day of the season.

Your Oilers Twitter follows for tonight:

From peewee to the pros, Albertans love the atmosphere, energy, and life lessons that take place at rinks across the province. And where there’s an arena, you’ll find an ATB branch nearby—with our team members cheering and fundraising along with you. See more information at ATB.com.