Just 24 hours after a tough loss in Glendale, the Calgary Flames (10-9-3, 23 points) are back at it to complete their short two game road trip. Tonight, they’re in scenic Paradise, Nevada to face the Vegas Golden Knights (9-9-3, 21 points). The Flames are playing their second game in as many days and have never, ever won in T-Mobile Arena. We’ll see what happens.
The puck drops at 5 p.m. MT on Sportsnet West and Sportsnet 960 The Fan!
The Flames
Yesterday’s lines, via Daily Faceoff:
Gaudreau – Monahan – Lindholm
Tkachuk- Backlund – Frolik
Mangiapane – Ryan – Bennett
Lucic – Jankowski – Rieder
Tkachuk- Backlund – Frolik
Mangiapane – Ryan – Bennett
Lucic – Jankowski – Rieder
Giordano – Andersson
Hanifin – Hamonic
Kylington – Stone
Hanifin – Hamonic
Kylington – Stone
Cam Talbot starts for the Flames, backed up by David Rittich. The projected scratches are Alan Quine and Brandon Davidson. Because of the back-to-back situation there’s no pre-game skate, but there should be an update on the lineup from the hotel sometime in the early afternoon.
What we do know is Dillon Dube has reportedly been called up from Stockton. But it’s not clear who’s going down to make room and who, if anybody, is injured enough to require Dube’s summoning.
The Flames have never won a game at T-Mobile Arena. They’ve only ever briefly had a lead there. They’ve really struggled against Vegas’ speed and depth. They’re really going to need to focus on keeping their game simple, because otherwise this thing could get out of hand pretty quickly.
The Golden Knights
Projected lines, via Daily Faceoff:
Pacioretty – Karlsson – Smith
Marchessault – Eakin – Stone
Glass – Stastny – Tuch
Carrier – Nosek – Reaves
Marchessault – Eakin – Stone
Glass – Stastny – Tuch
Carrier – Nosek – Reaves
McNabb – Schmidt
Hague – Theodore
Merrill – Holden
Hague – Theodore
Merrill – Holden
Marc-Andre Fleury starts for Vegas, backed up by Malcolm Subban. The expected scratches are Derek Engelland and Nicolas Roy. Brandon Pirri was on waivers this morning and will be off the roster one way or another.
Vegas has been nearly as consistent as the Flames. But they’ve given the Flames fits and are going to be an extremely tough out for them.
The Numbers
Flames | Golden Knights | |
Wins | 10 | 9 |
Points | 23 | 21 |
Adjusted Corsi | 51.4% | 52.5% |
Power Play | 17.8% | 21.1% |
Penalty Kill | 86.3% | 86.8% |
Injury Report
The Flames are without D TJ Brodie (fainting episode), D Juuso Valimaki (ACL surgery) and F Austin Czarnik (lower body).
The Golden Knights are healthy.
When Last We Met
The Flames visited Vegas in October. They lost 6-2 in a game that was not particularly close.
Know Thy Enemy
Here are some key Twitter peeps to follow for tonight: