rolling in to ol' Detroit tonight, the Flames look to rebound from the disappointing loss Friday night.
(from
http://calgaryherald.com/sports/hock...s-at-red-wings)
How They Match Up
Forwards — Flames
Scoring goals has been difficult for the Red Wings as of late and the Flames’ new-look top line is heating up.
Defence — Flames
They’ll be prepared after limiting the damage of Kane and Co. on Friday.
Goaltending — Flames
Despite Friday’s loss, Chad Johnson is still in a groove.
Power Play — Red Wings
The Flames are 0-for-eight in their last two games. Gonna have to go with the Red Wings on this one.
Penalty Kill — Flames
Before allowing one PPG on Friday, Calgary’s PK was perfect in three straight games.
Intangibles — Red Wings
Three straight losses will do wonders for a team’s motivation.
Overall — Red Wings
This feels like the perfect time for Calgary to lay an egg.
Set-up notes
With Friday’s 1-0 loss to the Washington Capitals, the Red Wings have now lost three straight games and its the third time they’ve been shutout this season … G Jimmy Howard made 27 saves … They are 2-7-1 in their last 10 games … Detroit is averaging 2.33 goals per game (heading into Saturday’s action, that was 24th in the league) which is only slightly better than Calgary at 2.26 goals per game … “Part of it is confidence,” head coach Jeff Blashill told the Detroit News. “When you’re scoring you feel good about yourself and playing with a ton of confidence and moxie. When you’re not scoring, it works the other way.” The Red Wings’ power play is 16.4 per cent (16th in the league) while their PK is 77.8 per cent (tied with Dallas for 26th in the league) … Detroit’s 28.1 shots per game average is the second-worst in the NHL … The Red Wings are 51.6 per cent on face-offs (seventh-best in the league) while Calgary is 50.8 per cent on average in the face-off dot … Calgary is embarking on its longest road trip of the year — a six game trek through the Eastern Conference with dates at Detroit, Buffalo, Columbus, Boston, Philadelphia, and Brooklyn.
Injuries
LW Johnny Gaudreau is in sick bay for the next six weeks with a broken finger and underwent surgery on Wednesday. Flames are still without LW Lance Bouma (shoulder) and RW Kris Versteeg (groin), but Versteeg could return to action on Sunday. The Red Wings are without C Darren Helm (shoulder), C Andreas Athanasiou (knee injury) and LW Thomas Vanek (lower body).
Projected Lineups (from
www.dailyfaceoff.com)
Flames
Bennett-Monahan-Brouwer
Tkachuk-Backlund-Frolik
Stajan-Vey-Chiasson
Ferland-F Hamilton-Hathaway
Giordano-D Hamilton
Brodie-Wideman
Kulak-Engelland
Johnson (unconfirmed)
Red Wings
Nyquist-Zetterberg-Mantha
Larkin-Nielsen-Vanek
Tatar-Sheahan-Abdelkader
Ott-Glendening-Miller
DeKeyser-Green
Ericsson-Marchenko
Kronwall-Sproul
Howard (unconfirmed)
and as we're playing in Detroit, That Darn Puppet thinks it appropriate to host a seafood feast. Steamed octopus, anyone?:
Go Flames