Flames facing a tough task to pull out of a slump with the last two Stanley Cup champions visiting the Stampede City before facing the Habs
The last days before the trade deadline delivered essentially what we expected. The Calgary Flames (31-28-5, 67 points) moved the last of their pending unrestricted free-agent defensemen with Noah Hanifin dealt to the Vegas Golden Knights. In return, the Flames added another couple of unproven defensemen in Daniil Miromanov from Vegas and Nikita Okhotiuk from the San Jose Sharks for a drat pick.
On the ice, though, it was ugly. After opening their three-game road trip with an impressive 6-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning the night before the draft, the Flames were thumped 5-1 by the Florida Panthers and 7-2 by the Carolina Hurricanes in consecutive afternoon weekend clashes.
Honestly, I don’t think it was players waiving the white flag. It appears a case of emotions of all the trades and rumours and a heavy schedule catching up to them.
While the Flames have hopes for a miracle run, and knowing it is a long-shot possibility, it’s a good bet they’ll go down swinging until those playoff hopes are exhausted. This week will be a great test to see what they’ve got in the tank and how much determination remains.
Here is a look at the opposition in the coming days.
Tuesday: versus Colorado Avalanche (40-20-5, 85 points)
How great is the dogfight in the Central Division? The Dallas Stars, Winnipeg Jets and Avalanche are all heavyweights who know winning the division’s importance. Falling short in this battle means facing one of their top-tier rivals in the opening round, and one of these squads will be dusted within the first two weeks of the playoffs.
Colorado hits town to kick off a four-game road trip riding a three-game winning streak and on a 7-2-1 run. The Avalanche loaded up at the trade deadline by adding forwards Brandon Duhaime, Yakov Trenin and Casey Mittelstadt, as well as defenseman Sean Walker. Not only did the Avs add even more skill to their squad, but they added size in those deals. From their roster, it cost defenseman Bowen Byram and forward Ryan Johansen.
The Avalanche may have questions surrounding their goaltending, but a team with Nathan MacKinnon (26 points in a 12-game streak), Mikko Rantanen (14 points in a nine-game run) and Cale Makar has the kind of offence that can light up a game at any moment. They are the league’s highest-scoring squad.
Thursday: versus Vegas Golden Knights (34-23-7, 75 points)
Hanifin finished his time with the Flames in the top 10 in games played, goals, assists and points on the franchise’s all-time list among defencemen. Whether he is welcomed back to Calgary with open arms from the fans remains to be seen with how he tried to dictate his landing spot beyond his eight-team no-trade clause. That will be one storyline.
The Golden Knights hold the Western Conference’s second wild-card spot, so the Flames are chasing them right now. Catching the Knights will be a tall order, but worth remembering Saturday’s 5-3 win over the Detroit Red Wings (in which Hanifin collected two assists and was named third star) snapped a four-game losing skid. Vegas has a 3-8-1 record in its last dozen games, so it will take more victories to believe the Golden Knights have turned the corner. Forward Anthony Mantha also was acquired before the deadline. Tomas Hertl also was acquired, but when he returns is still up in the air. Calgary has won two of three meetings this season.
Saturday: versus Montreal Canadiens (24-30-10, 58 points)
The Canadiens and Flames in a Hockey Night in Canada early game. Now that will give juice to a game between a couple of teams that could be in also-ran territory by this outing. Montreal opens a five-game trip in Calgary, but heads into Tuesday’s home game against Columbus with only three victories in 13 outings (3-8-2). The numbers are ugly for the Canadiens, who are near the bottom in most categories.
The Canadiens have a NHL-.500 record against Western Conference teams 12-12-3. Calgary won the meeting in Montreal, a 2-1 game in November, which snapped a five-game losing skid against the Canadiens.
