Flames focused on keeping playoff drive alive
Published
There will be no reflection, pre-game speeches, or sentimentality ahead of the biggest game for the Calgary Flames in three seasons.
The club is once again in a must-win situation when they host the Vegas Golden Knights in their last home game of the year on Tuesday night.
The Flames also need Minnesota to lose in regulation and St. Louis to lose in any fashion or win in overtime or by shootout to extend their season. Calgary’s game in Los Angeles on Thursday only matters if Tuesday’s conditions are met.
If the Flames and Blues are tied at the end of the season but St. Louis wins in overtime or shootout on Tuesday, Calgary would have the regulation wins tiebreaker and advance to the postseason.
“Not even needed,” forward Nazem Kadri said Tuesday when asked if a pre-game speech is necessary. “If you need a message to fire you up at this point, then something’s wrong with you.”
Head coach Ryan Huska said that there’s no talk of tonight possibly being the last night together at the Saddledome for this close-knit group.
“Not even there,” Huska said. “I don’t think anyone’s talked about it. It’s not been mentioned by us as a staff, so I think it’s probably like they’re hellbent on getting to where they want to get to.”
Blueliner Rasmus Andersson acknowledged how motivating it is to win with this collection of personalities.
“The group has been amazing all year,” he said. “We’ve got a really close group in here…it’s been amazing to be part of this group.”
They’re also in no mood to reflect on what they’ve accomplished.
“I don’t feel like we’re at the point of talking about how proud we are of the team right now,” Huska said.
Calgary has been one of the best teams in the league since mid-March. They have just three regulation losses in 15 games, and their offence, which previously was among the worst in the NHL, is 17th over that stretch.
Every night, different players have stepped up. On Friday versus the Wild, fourth-liner Ryan Lomberg scored on a breakaway partway through the third period to fire up the crowd. Two nights later, snakebitten winger Yegor Sharangovich scored two goals, including the game winner. Rookie Dustin Wolf has continued to be exceptional and given the club strong goaltending night after night.
Huska’s club found an identity early on this season and built on it.
“We’ve got a good feeling in here and we’ve just got to keep pushing,” Andersson said. “That’s all we can control.”
Calgary will face a Vegas squad that’s resting several of their best players ahead of the playoffs.
Captain Mark Stone, Hart Trophy candidate Jack Eichel, and top-four defencemen Alex Pietrangelo and Noah Hanifin will all be out of the lineup for the Golden Knights Tuesday, with backup goalie Ilya Samsonov set to start.
“We’re game 81 tonight and we’ve still got something to play for,” Andersson said. “Maybe one or two games, our effort hasn’t been there. The rest, 78, 79 games, the effort has been there. I think that’s how you rally behind a team. I think we’ve done a good job with that.”
Flames projected lineup
Huberdeau-Kadri-Klapka
Coleman-Backlund-Coronato
Farabee-Frost-Sharangovich
Lomberg-Rooney-Pospisil
Hanley-Weegar
Bahl-Miromanov
Bean-Pachal
Wolf