Calgary vying for a third consecutive win for only the third time this season
The season-high winning streak for the Calgary Flames is three.
Yes, let that sink in for a moment.
What is even worse for the Flames as they hit the road to face the Vancouver Canucks on Friday is that Calgary has managed to cobble together a three-game winning streak on only two occasions this season.
Yes, twice. The first run was to open the season. The second was in early December.
The Flames are looking to equal their season high for consecutive victories against a Canucks team that is all but mathematically eliminated from Stanley Cup contention, but certainly relishing the role of spoilers.
Vancouver is coming off Tuesday’s wild 6-5 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues, a game in which the Canucks trailed 5-3 going into the third period and tallied an overtime-forcing tying goal in the final minute.
The overtime loss has the Canucks on a 10-2-1 run, not exactly the performance of a team that has thrown in the towel or tanked for the top pick in this summer’s draft.
With the Flames sitting two points behind the Winnipeg Jets for the final playoff spot and only seven games remaining, this is just the latest big game.
Here are three keys to watch when the puck drops:
DEFENDING THE NET: Over their last four games, in which they have claimed three wins, the Flames have surrendered only eight goals. While that is hardly a six-foot-by-four-foot brick wall, it is a big improvement. The goaltending duo of Jacob Markstrom and Dan Vladar allowed eight goals against the Los Angeles Kings in the outing previous to those four games, and Markstrom surrendered six goals in his start two nights before that. If the Flames don’t continue their trend of clamping down defensively, they will be done and dusted from playoff contention.
FINDING THE POWER: Over their last five games, the Flames have scored five power-play goals in 15 opportunities, which has pulled them up to 20.4 percent for the season. Unique in the much-needed improvement with the man-advantages is the fact the goals have come off the sticks of five different goal scorers: Tyler Toffoli, Rasmus Andersson, Elias Lindholm, Nazem Kadri and Andrew Mangiapane.
VANCOUVER'S BIG GUNS ARE FIRING: The Canucks’ top two lines have both been pumping in the goals. The top line boasts Elias Pettersson, who has netted 95 points this season, and 37-goal scorer Andrei Kuzmenko, along with Dakota Joshua. On the second line, J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser have become new players since Rick Tocchet took over as head coach. Miller has collected 11 goals and 34 points in 27 games since the coaching change. Somehow, the Flames must keep both those lines in check.
QUICK HITS: Since returning from injury that kept him on the sidelines for three months, Vancouver goaltender Thatcher Demko has sported an 8-3-1 record. He has held opponents to two or fewer goals in eight of those contests … The teams have clashed twice this season, both times in Calgary. Vancouver won a 4-3 shootout game in mid-December, and the Flames claimed a 3-2 win on New Year’s Eve … The Flames have a 13-6-3 record against Pacific Division rivals. By comparison, the Canucks have an 14-6-0 mark in divisional games … The Flames and Canucks will meet for the last time on April 8, also in Vancouver.