The Calgary Flames will look to extend their winning streak to three games on Monday when they visit the United Center to take on the Chicago Blackhawks.

The Flames have gained some ground in the playoff race with a record of 5-3-2 in their last 10 games and will overtake the Vancouver Canucks if they win their game in hand tonight.

The Blackhawks enter off a 4-3 overtime loss at home versus the Edmonton Oilers and are just 2-8-0 in their last 10 games. They are 9-12-0 on home ice this season, which has actually made them a profitable bet based on how they have been priced in the market.

I’ll detail the relevant game notes, as well as outline my favourite betting angle below.

Dustin Wolf’s value was on full display in the first period versus the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday, as he stopped 16 of the 17 shots he faced to keep the Flames in the game early. Calgary was able to elevate its game in the following two periods to earn a critical victory, but was outshot 32-18 overall while allowing 15 high-danger chances.

Wolf saved 2.21 goals above expected on Saturday, and now holds a +8.2 GSAx rating in 22 games played this season. With a record of 14-8 straight-up, a $100 bettor would be up $577 backing Wolf in each of his starts this season based on closing lines.

Wolf was in the starter’s crease at Monday’s morning skate and will likely start his third straight game in this matchup, which means Daniel Vladar will likely start tomorrow in St. Louis. In games Vladar has started, the Flames are 6-13 straight-up and hold a -24.2% ROI this season.

The Flames’ second line of Matt Coronato, Blake Coleman, and Mikael Backlund was the only unit which was not outplayed at even strength versus the Kings. In 10:55 together, they held a 54.2% expected goal share and broke through with a critical game-tying goal midway through the second period.

Coronato led the Flames in shots on goal (five) and shot attempts (10). He’s now had 28 shots on goal from 51 attempts over the last seven games.

Based on Monday’s morning skate, Rory Kerins appears likely to make his NHL debut in this matchu and will likely play alongside Yegor Sharangovich and Jakob Pelletier on the third line. Given the complete lack of production from the bottom-six, it seems a fitting time for head coach Ryan Huska to insert Kerins into the lineup. Kerins has 34 points in 34 games in the AHL this season.  It appears as though Andrei Kuzmenko will be the forward coming out of the lineup.

The Blackhawks have played to a record of 6-11-0 in the time since Anders Sorensen was appointed to the head coaching position. That amounts to a points percentage of .353, which is nearly identical to their .346 win percentage under former head coach Luke Richardson.

Whether or not the Blackhawks are actually playing better hockey overall is debatable, but they certainly are playing different stylistically, which has led to improved offensive play from top forwards such as Connor Bedard and Tyler Bertuzzi. Bedard has put up 19 points in 17 games under Sorensen.

While the Blackhawks have been better offensively under Sorensen, it has come at the cost of allowing more chances against at the other end of the ice than they allowed while playing a highly conservative style under Richardson. Over the last 10 games, Chicago has allowed an xGA/60 of 4.00, and 34.42 shots against per 60, which is the highest mark in the NHL during that span.

Petr Mrazek has been confirmed as the Blackhawks’ starting goaltender in this matchup. He holds an .895 save percentage and a -8.9 GSAx rating in 25 games played this season.

With Wolf confirmed as the starter in this matchup it would be Flames or pass for me in terms of betting a side, but -160 does seem to be a relatively fair number. The Blackhawks have been more competent on home ice this season, and have managed to upset the red-hot Canadiens and Avalanche in two of their last four games at home. They also gave the Oilers a tough matchup on Saturday.

Perhaps a better option if you wanted to lock in a side is betting the Blues to win Tuesday’s game early, as the current prices are far from where I expected them to close. The Blues are currently priced around -150, and I think they’ll sit at a consensus price of -175 by the time the puck drops.

The bet that I like on Monday’s game is going back to Coronato to score a goal at +300. The price has shortened compared to Saturday when it was +350, but it seems reasonable to live with that adjustment given how Coronato played in that game, and how much easier it should be for him to get chances in this matchup.