Canucks at Flames
After earning three of a possible four points on their brief two-day trek, the Calgary Flames make a quick stop at home on Saturday to host the Vancouver Canucks. Calgary dropped a 2-1 shootout decision in Toronto on Wednesday but bounced back to post a 3-2 overtime win at Montreal the following night, improving to 4-1-2 in its last seven on the road.
Sean Monahan completed a two-goal performance with his team-leading 17th tally of the season 1:14 into the extra session as the Flames, who head back out on the road to face Minnesota on Tuesday, halted their three-game overall skid (0-2-1). Vancouver had its three-game winning streak snapped Thursday as it completed a 2-1-0 homestand with a 4-1 setback against Philadelphia. Rookie Brock Boeser scored the lone goal - his team-high 14th - for the Canucks, who played their first game without the injured Bo Horvat. The 22-year-old Horvat, who is second on the team with 20 points and tied for the club lead with five power-play tallies, could be out of the lineup for up to six weeks due to a fractured foot.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, CBC
ABOUT THE CANUCKS (14-11-4): Vancouver added depth at center after Thursday's loss, acquiring Nic Dowd from Los Angeles for defenseman Jordan Subban. The 27-year-old Dowd, who was a seventh-round pick in the 2009 draft, recorded one assist in 16 games with the Kings this season and has registered six goals and 23 points in 91 NHL contests. Three Canucks could reach milestones Saturday as Markus Granlund is one game shy of 200 in the NHL, captain Henrik Sedin needs two assists for 800 and defenseman Michael Del Zotto is one point away from 200.
ABOUT THE FLAMES (15-12-2): Monahan, who has collected three goals and an assist during his three-game point streak, entered Friday tied for the league lead with six game-winning tallies. The 23-year-old finished Thursday tied for third in the NHL with 17 goals - seven of which have been scored on the power play. Goaltender Mike Smith, who is winless in his last three starts (0-1-1), is expected to appear in his 500th career game on Saturday.
OVERTIME
1. Future Hall-of-Fame RW Jaromir Jagr has missed two straight games with a lower-body injury and remains day-to-day.
2. Vancouver assigned G Thatcher Demko to Utica of the American Hockey League on Friday.
3. Calgary LW Matthew Tkachuk is expected back in the lineup after serving his one-game suspension for unsportsmanlike conduct on Thursday.