Flames captain Backlund (UBI) listed as week-to-week amid playoff push
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The Calgary Flames have listed captain Mikael Backlund as week-to-week.
The update comes as the Flames continue to push to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2022. Calgary currently hold down the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference on 71 points, level with the Vancouver Canucks, but ahead on regulation victories by one (24 to 23).
The veteran forward incurred an upper-body injury during the team's 4-3 shootout loss to the Canucks on Wednesday night.
“It’s not easy for him to be out. He wants to be out here, especially at this time of the year," Flames forward Jonathan Huberdeau said Friday. "But we’re going to play for him and we’re going to get the job done.”
The injury came during the first period of action where Backlund took five shifts totaling just under three minutes of ice time. He left the game and did not return. During his final shift, he appeared to be in some discomfort after throwing a check on Canucks defenceman Victor Mancini.
Backlund, 35, is in his 17th season with the Flames. He's appeared in 64 games this season, scoring 11 goals and adding 13 assists.
With Backlund injured and Connor Zary serving a two-game suspension, Calgary recalled forward Dryden Hunt from the AHL on Friday.
The team returns to action on Friday night with a visit from the Colorado Avalanche.