Flames at Rangers
The Calgary Flames have been perfect thus far on their six-game road trip, which reaches the midway point when they visit the struggling New York Rangers on Friday. Calgary has begun its trek with 3-2 victories at Chicago and New Jersey, giving it three straight wins overall and moving it into third place in the Pacific Division.
Sean Monahan leads the Flames with 27 goals and has recorded five during his four-game streak after tallying twice in Thursday's triumph over the Devils. The 23-year-old center leads the NHL with 10 game-winning goals and is four tallies away from matching the career high he set in 2014-15. New York has lost four consecutive contests and seven of its last eight but still finds itself only three points out of a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. The Rangers were trounced 6-1 at home by Boston on Wednesday and have scored a total of four goals during their current slide.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Sportsnet West (Calgary), MSG (New York)
ABOUT THE FLAMES (28-18-8): Johnny Gaudreau leads the team with 64 points after recording a goal and an assist against the Devils. The 24-year-old native of New Jersey has tallied in three straight contests and added four assists during his four-game point streak. Gaudreau has landed on the scoresheet in 14 of his last 16 games and has not gone more than one without a point since Dec. 28 and 29.
ABOUT THE RANGERS (25-24-5): Rick Nash, who could be on the move before the trading deadline on Feb. 26, scored the team's lone goal versus the Bruins and is three points shy of 800 for his career. Brendan Smith, who signed a four-year, $17.4 million contract in June, was placed on waivers Thursday after recording a goal and seven assists in 44 contests this season. "There's no doubt that he has played better for us in the past," coach Alain Vigneault told the team's website regarding the defenseman. "This year got off to a slow start. We worked with him in a number of different ways, and he seemed to be having a hard time finding his game. At the end of the day, this might be a little bit drastic here, but management and the coaches felt that this is the right move for our team right now."
OVERTIME
1. Rangers LW Jimmy Vesey practiced without contact on Thursday as he continues his recovery from the concussion he suffered Saturday at Nashville.
2. Calgary is 6-0-1 in its last seven away from home and has lost in regulation just once in its last 14 on the road (9-1-4).
3. New York recalled D Neal Pionk from Hartford of the American Hockey League to replace Smith, and the 22-year-old could make his NHL debut on Friday.