Welcome to the third week of our Western Conference playoff race coverage. The Calgary Flames are still in the playoff mix, but they’ve basically burnt off any breathing room they once had.

Let’s check out the race.

The Flames head into the All-Star Break eighth in the Western Conference in points earned and 10th in points percentage. They’ve played more games than any other Western club – Winnipeg has also played 52 games – and so the danger for them is other clubs using up their games in hand. Oh, and three-point games. Those will absolutely sink the Flames.

If the playoffs began today, the Flames would be starting against Minnesota (if you judge by point totals) or golfing (if you judge by points percentage).

The Flames were not great this week. They captured two of a possible eight points. And the six points they didn’t get, they looked awful not getting. They lost 7-3 to Edmonton, 4-0 to Toronto and 5-1 to Montreal. They finally got on the board with a 3-2 overtime win in Ottawa.

The Flames are off for most of the next week due to the All-Star Break. They play just one game this week, but it could be a potential playoff preview. They host the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday. Hopefully the break and a fresh start allows the team to reset and come out guns blazing after the All-Star Game.