Flames: 30-35-6, 66 points, 5th in Pacific, 11th in West, 25th in NHL.
Canadiens: 33-33-6, 72 points, 6th in the Atlantic, 13th in East, 22nd in NHL.
More end of the year reviews:
Mark Giordano (A-): G-19, A-29, P-48, -5, PPG-8. I would have given Giordano an A if not for the horrible start to the year. It falls on him for a few reasons. With Brodie out, the team needed him to be a rock on the back end, and he was more culpable than most when it came to defensive breakdowns. He looked lost in his own zone, which further hurt the young and transitioning Dougie Hamilton. Also, as the captain, it falls on him to rally the young team around him and keep everyone calm and composed. He didn't, and while I don't put it entirely on him, I do fault him for not being able to keep the team in the hunt through October. That period single-handedly sunk the season for the Flames, and as the captain he bears a fair amount of responsibility. I know he was recovering from an injury, but that doesn't account for the lack of mental preparation this team seemed to have going into game 1.
However, despite all that, he had a very, very good individual campaign, especially offensively. He will likely break the 20 goal mark, which is an exceptional feat for a defenseman. His defense has improved by large amounts compared to the beginning of the year, and has a respectable -5 on a very poor defensive team with awful goaltending.
Mikael Backlund (A-): G-15, A-24, P-39, +9, PPP-8, SHP-3, OTG-2. Look at that stat line and you can see that you get a little bit of everything from Backlund this year. He's had a prototypical 2-way center season, putting up a decent amount of points, including some success on the power play, short-handed, and in overtime. He's also a team best +9, and considering that the team is a collective -26, that's an impressive feat. He's not a guy that can single-handedly put a team on his back, and there were definite stretches this year where he disappeared completely, but he's not an elite player where you can expect that kind of thing from him. I can't quite give him an A because the team success hasn't been there this year, as well as because of the lack of success on the penalty kill, of which he is a key cog.
Deryk Engelland (B+): G-1, A-6, P-7, 0. Engelland gets a bad rap because comparatively to the rest of the d-core, he is by far the least skilled. Surprisingly though, when this team had no idea how to play defense early in the year, he was the only stabilizing presence on the back end and did yeoman's work trying to take care of his own end all year long. Yes, he's still prone to a defensive mistake and has trouble doing anything other than icing the puck, but he's been a strong presence all year long both defensively and physically. He's been a pretty big unsung hero this year as this team has struggled all year long, but he's been Mr. Consistency.
Josh Jooris (C+): G-4, A-6, P-10, -4. An awful shooting percentage has sunken Jooris' campaign, with just 5.4%. He's far more talented than that number would suggest, and should probably have closer to 10 goals on the year and a few more points. He has struggled at times though, not being nearly as effective as he was last year. But nobody can question his energy and attention to detail. Jooris is what he is, an 4th line energy forward who can play multiple positions. He's a useful tool in the course of a long season, but he had a tough time making a difference on a struggling team. Like most Flames, his confidence took a beating with the lack of results, and maybe the sophomore jinx struck him a little. I think he's a valuable depth player going forward, so here's hoping he comes back stronger next year.
Brandon Bollig (C-): G-1, A-2, P-3, -8, PIM-72. Just 43 games this year for Bollig, meaning he'll play just a little more than half the games this year. On a team with better depth, I doubt he sees more than 30 games all year. However, in a physically challenging Western Conference, Bollig's occasional presence is still necessary as long as the rest of the Flames are composed of smaller, softer players. He did what he was supposed to do most of the time, and that's being an occasional lineup selection on the 4th line who can be a physical intimidator. However, considering how often Gaudreau has been whack and slashed this year, I felt he missed his mark in terms of being a true protector. Sometimes he couldn't find a willing combatant, but more often than not he simply wasn't engaged in the game enough to play his role properly. I would not be sad if he didn't return next year.
As for the game today, this could be a bit of a revenge game for the Flames who were embarrassed 6-2 by these Canadiens on home ice back in October. Ortio had a painful game, and Weise scored a hat trick. I have a sense that the Flames will want to show up the Habs for that game.
Roster Notes: Niklas Backstrom will make his first start in goal in more than a full calendar year. He hasn't started since the Wild traded for Devan Dubnyk way back in early 2015. I feel for the guy, and I honestly hope he has an amazing game, just to show that he can still play for someone. Wideman is done for the season with a triceps injury that may or may not require surgery. Still no word on Bennett's return, but I imagine it will be in the next week or so. For the Canadiens, obviously Carey Price's season was done a long time ago. PK Subban is still recovering from the brutal head/neck injury that he suffered a few games ago. Jeff Petry, Tom Gilbert, Brian Flynn, and David Desharnais have now all been out of the lineup for more than 15 games, and continue to be sidelined. Brendan Gallagher continues to miss action with a groin injury. The Habs are a shell of their normal lineup.
Flames
Gaudreau-Monahan-Ferland
Colborne-Backlund-Frolik
Bouma-F. Hamilton-Hathaway
Bollig-Stajan-Jooris
Giordano-Engelland
Brodie-Hamilton
Jokipakka-Nakladal
Backstrom
Canadiens
Pacioretty-Galchenyuk-Andrighetto
Byron-Plekanec-Ellar
De La Rose-McCarron-Lessio
Mitchell-Danault-Brown
Markov-Beaulieu
Emelin-Pateryn
Bartley-Dietz
Condon
Go Flames Go!!!!!!