Welcome back Paul.
Flames: 2-7-1, 6th in Pacific, 13th in West, 27th in NHL.
Canadiens: 9-2-0, 1st in Atlantic, 1st in East, 1st in NHL.
The Flames return home to the 'dome following a rough 3 game road trip out East. Following two uninspiring games against the New York teams that saw them outscored 8-1, the Flames managed to finally score some goals against a struggling Ottawa team. Unfortunately, they forgot to play defense, allowing quite a few goals of their own (a common theme so far this year) and ended up falling 5-4 in a shootout. Jonas Hiller also went down with an injury, and is out day to day. Karri Ramo was recalled to replace him on the roster, and Jakub Nakladal was returned to Stockton. It hasn't been talked about much, but Micheal Ferland was placed on IR week to week with a sprained MCL.
It wasn't all bad news. T.J. Brodie made his return to the lineup and instantly gave the team a shot in the arm. He looked calm and poised all night, giving the team a new look from the back end. Sam Bennett scored his first regular season goal, and Dougie Hamilton had a strong night both defensively and offensively. The team still struggled at times, but overall had an incredibly strong performance against the Sens. A couple of defensive breakdowns and some below average goaltending were the only reasons for a loss in that game.
So the Flames are still a work in progress, but at least they are trending in the right direction. That's good news because they will face an extremely tough test in the league leading Montreal Canadiens. They got off to a torrid pace early, going 9-0-0, but have dropped two straight to the Western Canadian teams. Vancouver had plenty of lucky goals in a weird 5-1 victory over the Habs. They looked back on track in Edmonton, finishing the first period up 3-0. Then they mailed it in the rest of the game with just 10 SOG over the last two periods, allowing the Oilers to come back with a 4-3 victory. The Habs have looked sloppy the last two games, which means they might come out fired up tonight. However, 3 games in 4 nights on the road will probably take it's toll on their energy, giving the Flames a slight edge. They'll need every advantage they can get, as they still look like a team trying to figure things out. Just a hunch, but I assume the Flames will see the backup tonight since they haven't had much offensive punch this season.
The big question for tonight is who gets the net? Joni Orito came in as an injury replacement for Hiller and fared quite well, allowing the team to get back in the game. Karri Ramo was recently banished to the NHL for his poor play, so it's not a lock that he would get a start after losing the confidence of his coach and GM. However, Hartley loves his veterans, so it's entirely possible he goes back to Ramo. I don't know what will happen, but I feel like it's 50/50 as to who will get the start, and should it go one way, it will send CP into a rage.
Lineups are an educated guess. Nothing is confirmed. Don't get excited.
Flames
Colborne-Monahan-Hudler
Gaudreau-Bennett-Frolik
Raymond-Backlund-Jones
Bollig-Stajan-Jooris
Giordano-Brodie
Russell-Wideman
Engelland-Hamilton
Ortio
Canadiens
Pacioretty-Plekanec-Gallagher
Eller-Galchenyuk-Flynn
Fleischmann-Desharnais-Weise
Byron-Mitchell-Smith-Pelley
Markov-Subban
Emelin-Petry
Beaulieu-Gilbert
Condon
Go Flames Go!!!