[GDT] Flames @ Stars, 7:00 PM MST. Sportsnet Flames, Fan 960

[Puppet Guy]

Back to the ice, and hopefully back into the win column. The Flames cruise into Dallas tonight to take on the Stars.


Some Stars news (from www.defendingbigd.com)

The Dallas Stars have been less than successful on road trips this season and Wednesday night’s tilt against the Colorado Avalanche was no exception. Thankfully, with Thursday night off for Thanksgiving, the Stars are back at home on Black Friday for a fire sale on the Calgary Flames.

This will be the second of three games against the Flames this season. The first, played in Calgary, was a 2-1 victory for the Stars, and the third is set for February.

And I don’t know if you’ve checked recently, but Dallas’ own John Klingberg is tied for first among NHL defensemen in scoring with 20 points.

Goalies: Mike McKenna was reassigned to the AHL yesterday, which should mean that Kari Lehtonen will be available for today’s game. Could be a start for him, as Bishop played the two back-to-back earlier this week.

Honka: Was recalled again. Still not expecting him to play.

Ahead of tonight’s game will be the Jere Lehtinen jersey retirement ceremony, starting at 6:30, so be sure to arrive at the arena early.

And a little bit of Flames news (from www.calgarysun.com)

If you’re a believer in this barometer, there’s good news for Flames fans and not-so-good news for supporters of the Stars. There’s an old theory that almost all of the squads in a playoff position on American Thanksgiving will still be there come spring, and the Flames (12-8-1) hit the holiday in the third spot in the Pacific Division. The Stars (11-10-1) are sitting 13th in the Western Conference. A glass-half-full sort would point out that their 23 points puts them in a logjam for eighth, although they’ve played more games than the five other teams with that same total.

Both of these squads were shut out in their last outing — the Flames shooting blanks in a 1-0 overtime loss to the Blue Jackets and the Stars on the wrong end of a 3-0 score against the Avalanche. Don’t expect a barn-burner on Black Friday. The boys from the Big D are allowing just 1.8 goals per game at home, the lowest mark in the league, plus the first meeting of the season was a low-scoring affair, with Alex Radulov cashing in on a third-period power-play to lift the Stars to a 2-1 victory at the Saddledome.

The Stars will raise Jere Lehtinen’s No. 26 jersey to the rafters during a pre-game ceremony. Lehtinen spent 14 seasons in Dallas, collecting 514 career points but earning more praise for his defensive handiwork. The Finnish winger was a three-time winner of the Selke Trophy and a key piece of a Stanley Cup-winning squad in 1999. Other off-limits numbers for the Stars include No. 7 (Neal Broten), No. 8 (Bill Goldsworthy), No. 9 (Mike Modano) and No. 19 (Bill Masterton).

The Flames have triumphed in four of their past five trips to Dallas, but this current crew of Stars are hot at home — they’re 8-2-0 so far at American Airlines Center … Stars D John Klingberg is tied for top spot in the NHL’s scoring race among defencemen, with 20 points … The hosts are hopeful C Martin Hanzal, a spectator for the past two tilts due to a hand injury, will be ready to return against the Flames.

Lineups, unconfirmed and subject to the Gulutzan Blend-o-Matic (courtesy of www.dailyfaceoff.com)

Flames

Gaudreau - Monahan - Ferland
Tkachuk - Backlund - Frolik
Versteeg - Jankowski - Jagr
Bennett - F Hamilton - Brouwer

Giordano - D Hamilton
Brodie - Hamonic
Kulak - Stone

Smith

Stars

Janmark - Benn - Radulov
Shore - Seguin - Spezza
Roussel - Faksa - Pitlick
Elie - Smith - Ritchie

Lindell - Klingberg
Hamhuis - Pateryn
Oleksiak - Johns

Bishop


It's Black Friday in the States. And That Darn Puppet knows that's it's better to light a single candle than curse the darkness. He's also known for his sense of overkill:

Spoiler!

Go Flames

[sureLoss]

Expect a late start with Jere Lehtinen's number retirement ceremony

[nemanja2306]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

Expect a late start with Jere Lehtinen's number retirement ceremony

That's great actually. Instead of getting up at 3am, I now get to get up at 4am.

[J79]

[sureLoss]

woah the ceremony is scheduled to start an hour and half before the game, so maybe not so late start.

[FanIn80]

Lehtinen? He was really good, for sure, but jersey retirement? Wouldn’t that be like us retiring Pepper’s or Otto’s jerseys?

Jerseys you retire: #2, #9, #12, #14, #30, #34
Players you honour: #10, #12, #22, #24, #25, #28, #29, #31

If I was looking at Dallas’ all-time roster, I would put a player like Modano or Ciccarelli in the first group and a Lehtinen or Hatcher in the second.

[handgroen]

i kept hearing them tease some mike smith comments on the fan yesterday. sounded like he ripped the team. anyone have the quote?

[Huntingwhale]

Originally Posted by FanIn80

Lehtinen? He was really good, for sure, but jersey retirement? Wouldn’t that be like us retiring Pepper’s or Otto’s jerseys?

Jerseys you retire: #2, #9, #12, #14, #30, #34
Players you honour: #1, #10, #12, #22, #24, #25, #28, #29

If I was looking at Dallas’ all-time roster, I would put a player like Modano or Ciccarelli in the first group and a Lehtinen or Hatcher in the second.

Lehtinen won 3 Selkes, was nominated another 3 times, and overall was the best defensive forward in the entire league for a long period of time. Incredibly, he played his entire career as a winger. I'm too lazy to look up how many wingers were Selke caliber players, but I don't imagine it's that many. When was the last time a winger even got a Selke nomination?

He was incredibly underrated his entire career. He's certainly above Hatcher and IMO deserves to be retired alongside Modano.

[FanIn80]

There are Selke winners, and then there are Selke winners.

Selkes you retire: Francis, Yzerman, Fedorov, Datsyuk (all-time greats)
Selkes you honour: Lehtinen, Bergeron, Kopitar (top defensive forwards)

I will acknowledge that “impact on a franchise” plays a huge role in these things too. Since I was a huge Avs fan during those years, I hated Dallas big time. I’m probably underestimating the effect he had on the franchise, to be fair. Some guys, when they retire, you know their jersey is going to hang in at least one arena, but Lehtinen wasn’t one of those guys for me.

[Gaskal]

Originally Posted by handgroen

i kept hearing them tease some mike smith comments on the fan yesterday. Sounded like he ripped the team. Anyone have the quote?

[dammage79]

Stars loved Lehtinen like they loved Zubov and Modano. Those 3 for sure have jersey retirement carriers for the stars.

[genetic_phreek]

It's my birthday today. I usually don't ask for much, but today I'm asking for a Flames win and Oilers loss. That is all.

Let's do this! GFG

[mdubz]

Originally Posted by Gaskal

broken

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by FanIn80

There are Selke winners, and then there are Selke winners.

Selkes you retire: Francis, Yzerman, Fedorov, Datsyuk (all-time greats)
Selkes you honour: Lehtinen, Bergeron, Kopitar (top defensive forwards)

I will acknowledge that “impact on a franchise” plays a huge role in these things too. Since I was a huge Avs fan during those years, I hated Dallas big time. I’m probably underestimating the effect he had on the franchise, to be fair. Some guys, when they retire, you know their jersey is going to hang in at least one arena, but Lehtinen wasn’t one of those guys for me.

For me Bergeron is a HHOFer when he retires. Just too elite at which he does for too long.
But a guy like Lehtinen was just as important to that core that I hvae no iddue with guys like that getting retired. A tremendously under-rated players

[Gaskal]

Originally Posted by mdubz

broken

Brief version is that he didn't sound happy with the team's play, said that they in no way deserved the win playing the way they did, something about "shooting ourselves in the foot again". Mentioned that the group has to buy into the defensive side of the game as a whole as well even though the one line has been carrying us offensively.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by FanIn80

Lehtinen? He was really good, for sure, but jersey retirement? Wouldn’t that be like us retiring Pepper’s or Otto’s jerseys?

Jerseys you retire: #2, #9, #12, #14, #30, #34
Players you honour: #1, #10, #12, #22, #24, #25, #28, #29

Which #1 are you honouring? That's been an awful number for the Flames.

[VANFLAMESFAN]

Originally Posted by FanIn80

Lehtinen? He was really good, for sure, but jersey retirement? Wouldn’t that be like us retiring Pepper’s or Otto’s jerseys?

Jerseys you retire: #2, #9, #12, #14, #30, #34
Players you honour: #1, #10, #12, #22, #24, #25, #28, #29

If I was looking at Dallas’ all-time roster, I would put a player like Modano or Ciccarelli in the first group and a Lehtinen or Hatcher in the second.

You want to hang Ciccarelli's jersey in Dallas despite having never played in Dallas?

I know there's precedent with Hawerchuk in Arizona, but that one was weird to me as well.

People in Dallas have no idea who Dino is.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Gaskal

Brief version is that he didn't sound happy with the team's play, said that they in no way deserved the win playing the way they did, something about "shooting ourselves in the foot again". Mentioned that the group has to buy into the defensive side of the game as a whole as well even though the one line has been carrying us offensively.

He (and very few others) have the capital to make those comments. He's actually the perfect guy to do so. I'm sure Gio says the same stuff quite often, but since he's been the only captain the team (outside of Backlund and Brodie) has ever known to some extent I imagine it's better coming from a new credible source like Smith.

[sureLoss]

Derek Wills @Fan960Wills
now
#Flames projected line-up vs. #Stars:

Gaudreau-Monahan-Ferland
Tkachuk-Backlund-Frolik
Bennett-Jankowski-Jagr
Versteeg-Lazar-Brouwer

Giordano-D. Hamilton
Brodie-Hamonic
Kulak-Stone

Smith (Starter)
Rittich

[Poe969]

maybe it's just me but on D I'd like to see how Kulak-Hamonic and Brodie-Stone do. Kulak has been a pleasant surprise so he might do well with Hamonic and Brodie and Stone have history and looked good together.