(Sports Network) - The Calgary Flames hope to continue their red-hot start to the season when they welcome the Dallas Stars for tonight's battle at the Saddledome.
The Flames and new head coach Brent Sutter have the best record in the league at 4-0-0. Nashville is the only other unbeaten squad left in the NHL at 2-0-0.
Calgary's latest victory came in dramatic fashion Thursday night in Edmonton. Olli Jokinen scored the decisive goal in the shootout, as the Flames downed the rival Oilers by a 4-3 score at Rexall Place.
The only other time the Flames won four straight games to start a season was when they captured their first-ever Pacific Division title back in 1993-94.
Edmonton's Sam Gagner went first in the extra segment and had his offering stopped. Calgary's Nigel Dawes then skated in, faked left and fired a goal over Nikolai Khabibulin's glove hand. Patrick O'Sullivan then beat Flames goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff.
Jokinen skated in towards the left side of the goal and managed to squeeze the puck between the left post and Khabibulin's skate. Kiprusoff then denied Ales Hemsky to end the game.
Rene Bourque had a goal and two assists for the Flames. Daymond Langkow and Dawes also scored in regulation, while Kiprusoff stopped 25 shots.
Calgary had an excellent 27-10-4 record as the host last year and is already out to fast start at home with two wins in as many games at the Saddledome. The Flames will next embark on a two-game road trip, which begins Monday in Chicago and ends the following night in Columbus.
The Stars will get another shot at picking up their first win of the year tonight after gaining a point in a pair of shootout losses to begin the season.
Dallas was handed a 3-2 loss by visiting Nashville to open the season last Saturday and then was dealt a 5-4 setback Tuesday night in Edmonton. Hemsky scored in the shootout phase to lift the Oilers at Rexall Place.
Brenden Morrow tallied two goals and an assist for the Stars and Marty Turco made 20 saves in defeat. James Neal had the other regulation goal for Dallas, but his attempt to extend the shootout clanked off the left post.
The Stars are expected to go with Alex Auld in net for the first time this season. Auld will give Turco a breather, but expect Dallas to use its No. 1 netminder for Sunday's test in Vancouver.
The Stars center Mike Modano was out with a rib injury, while Dallas right wing Jere Lehtinen was sidelined with a hip/groin injury. Lehtinen is questionable for tonight's test, while Modano is expected to be out for at least a week.
Tonight marks the middle segment of a three-game road trip for the Stars, who were just 16-19-6 as the visiting club last year. Dallas will complete the swing Sunday night in Vancouver.
The Stars and Flames split four meetings in 2008-09 and the club's have each won six games in the last 12 matchups between the clubs. Dallas has dropped four of its last seven games in Calgary.