Flames at Coyotes
The Calgary Flames finally ran into a hot goaltender to stymie their scorching offense but they will try to regain their scoring touch when they wind up a two-game road trip against the Arizona Coyotes on Sunday afternoon. After erupting for 17 goals during a three-game winning streak, Calgary was blanked for the first time this season Friday in Las Vegas.
The Flames were the fourth team in league history to erupt for at least five first-period goals in back-to-back games, but they was shut out by Vegas 2-0 just four days after routing the Golden Knights 7-2. "These are the games you've got to get used to," Calgary captain Mark Giordano told reporters. "That's what the league's going to be all about, especially as the year goes on." The Coyotes dropped their third in a row with a 5-1 home loss to Colorado on Friday night and their sputtering offense has managed only seven goals in the past five games (1-3-1). "Right now we can't chase any game because we're not really getting any production," Arizona coach Rick Tocchet told reporters after the latest setback.
TV: 3 p.m. ET, Sportsnet (Calgary), FS Arizona
ABOUT THE FLAMES (13-9-1): James Neal was honored by the Golden Knights in his return to Las Vegas for helping the team reach the Stanley Cup Finals last season, but he continued to struggle offensively. Neal, who is mired in a nine-game point drought, was the odd man out as coach Bill Peters juggled his third and fourth lines at Saturday's practice but he will be in the lineup Sunday. David Rittich had his six-start winning streak halted despite turning aside 26 of 28 shots Friday and could give way to ex-Coyotes netminder Mike Smith against his former teammates.
ABOUT THE COYOTES (9-10-2): Antti Raanta had a rude welcome back to the lineup after missing eight games due to a lower-body injury, allowing three goals in the first 10 minutes against the Avalanche. "It was three-nothing and the game was pretty much over. Rough start for sure," Raanta told reporters. "It's about how we play and how I'm playing and it's pretty awful right now. There's a lot of things to do right now to regroup again." Former No. 3 overall draft pick Dylan Strome ended a 10-game goal drought with a power-play tally and won seven of nine faceoffs.
OVERTIME
1. The teams split four meetings last season, with Arizona outscoring Calgary 9-3 in winning the last two.
2. Flames F Johnny Gaudreau has four goals and 15 points in 17 career games versus Arizona.
3. Coyotes D Oliver Ekman-Larsson had two goals and an assist in four games against the Flames last season.