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Mikael Backlund scores his 230th career goal, passing Kent Nilsson for fifth in Flames history
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Photo credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images
Paige Humphrey
Mar 15, 2026, 14:00 EDTUpdated: Mar 15, 2026, 10:49 EDT
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Calgary Flames captain Mikael Backlund recorded his 230th NHL career goal in Saturday night’s game against the New York Islanders.
Backlund was able to redirect a shot from new Flames acquisition Olli Määttä, who was set up by Kevin Bahl. The assist from Määttä marked the 200th NHL point of his career, adding another layer of significance to the goal. His goal early into the third period at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, ended the team’s game-long scoring drought and made it a 3-1 game. 
This goal is not only monumental in number, but it also slotted Backlund in at fifth place in the Flames franchise all-time goal-scoring leaderboard, bumping down Kent Nilsson to sixth. Ahead of Backlund in goals are four Flames legends: Jarome Iginla, Theo Fleury, Joe Nieuwendyk and Gary Roberts.
Backlund holds a crucial part on the team, holding the position of captain for the past two and a half seasons. He also has brought a commanding force to the ice with his height and agility since he was selected by the Flames as a first round pick (24th overall) in the 2007 NHL Draft. His dedication to the team is reflected in his status as one of the longest-tenured players in Flames history.  
He has been on a hot streak, hitting highly commendable career milestones in the past two games the Flames have played on their east coast road trip. In Thursday night’s game against the New Jersey Devils, he clinched his 600th NHL career point with a third period goal and tied Nilsson on the franchise leaderboard in goals.
Backlund’s goal gave the team the momentum to find the net one more time in the game with a powerful snap shot from Blake Coleman, assisted by Yan Kuznetsov. Although the team fought a hard battle in the third, they were still unable to overcome the Islanders and the game ended with a score of 3-2, concluding their second last east coast road trip game
The Flames close out their road trip on Monday night in Detroit.
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