Having halved their training camp roster on Monday, the Calgary Flames return to pre-season action this evening at the palatial Scotiabank Saddledome as they welcome the Winnipeg Jets. It’s a rematch of a 4-1 Flames loss in the ‘Peg on Sunday and features the Flames icing largely their Game 1 regular season lineup.
The puck drops at 7 p.m. MT and you can catch the game on the radio (on Sportsnet 960 The Fan) or via web stream (on the Flames social media platforms).

The Flames

Lines, via our pal Pat Steinberg:
Gaudreau – Monahan – Lindholm
Bennett – Backlund – Frolik
Lucic – Ryan – Mangiapane
Dube – Jankowski – Czarnik
Giordano – Brodie
Hanifin – Hamonic
Kylington – Andersson
Players not dressed tonight are Jon Gillies, Michael Stone, Andrew MacDonald, Brandon Davidson, Tobias Rieder, Devante Smith-Pelly, Zac Rinaldo and Alan Quine.
“Timely Stop” David Rittich starts in net, backed up by Cam Talbot. The lineup is functionally what they’ll dress on opening night against Colorado, aside from perhaps a Matthew Tkachuk. Keep an eye on that Kylington/Andersson duo; if Kylington looks strong, he could cement himself in the lineup for awhile.

The Jets

No lines for Winnipeg are available, but here’s who’s making the trek westward:
  • Goalies Eric Comrie and Mikhail Berdin
  • Defensemen Anthony Bitetto, Tucker Poolman, Dmitry Kulikov, Josh Morrissey, Nelson Nogier and Nathan Beaulieu
  • Forwards Andrew Copp, Seth Griffith, Mark Letestu, JC Lipon, David Gustafsson, Andrei Chibisov, Gabriel Bourque, Jansen Harkins, Michael Spacek, Mason Appleton, Kristian Reichel and Kristian Vesalainen
It’s a leaner lineup than the Flames saw in Winnipeg, which is to be expected.

What to watch

After generating many chances but failing to bury them in Winnipeg – granted, with an AHL lineup dressed – can the NHL-ready Flames do the same thing but bury them against a pretty inexperienced Jets squad? And can the players who have stood out for the Flames thus far, notably Dillon Dube, continue to make their cases for continuing NHL employment?
Let’s find out!