Red Wings at Flames
The Calgary Flames have catapulted to the top of the Western Conference standings on the strength of an 8-1-2 run, however, Bill Peters' team was left with a sour taste in its mouth after sustaining its first home loss in three weeks. The Flames vie to get back to their winning ways on Friday when they complete their five-game homestand against the Detroit Red Wings to Scotiabank Saddledome.
"We were good there for a while winning a bunch in a row, but we've got to start a new streak here," Matthew Tkachuk said after extending his goal-scoring run to four games and point streak to six (six goals, two assists) following Wednesday's 4-3 overtime loss to Buffalo. Fellow forward Johnny Gaudreau collected a goal and an assist against the Sabres to push his point streak to nine games (nine goals, 11 assists) heading into Friday's tilt versus the Red Wings, against whom he scored a goal and set up three others in a 5-3 win in Detroit on Jan. 2. The Red Wings answered a dismal 1-7-2 stretch by recording back-to-back wins for the first time since Nov. 28-Dec. 1 to put a bit of a spring in their step ahead of a three-game trek through Western Canada. "It's been a long time, so that feels nice, obviously," Gustav Nyquist said following wins over Minnesota and ice-cold Anaheim. "I think we've been trending in the right direction for quite a while, to be honest with you, and not getting the wins. At the same time, it feels like we stand here talking about that and at some point, you've got to prove it. Hopefully, we can use these two wins and build on them."
TV: 9 p.m. ET, ESPN-Plus, FS Detroit-Plus, TVAS, Sportsnet West (Calgary)
ABOUT THE RED WINGS (18-23-7): Detroit reportedly is asking for a first-round pick in exchange for either Gustav or goaltender Jimmy Howard prior to the trade deadline, according to Ansar Khan of MLive.com. The pending unrestricted free agents likely won't be leaving the Motor City, however, and Khan reported that the team intends to sign both to contract extensions over the next month. Gustav's 40 points (11 goals, club-best 29 assists) trail only fellow forward Dylan Larkin on the team while the 34-year-old Howard has yielded just three goals in back-to-back wins to improve to 13-12-5 in a season that will bring about an appearance in his second career All-Star Game later this month.
ABOUT THE FLAMES (30-13-5): Although captain Mark Giordano followed up his NHL First Star of the Week honor by setting up a goal versus Buffalo to boost his point streak to five games (three goals, six assists), the blue-liner lamented a few defensive lapses following the loss. "We know we can be better. We gave up a few breakaways we don't usually do," the 35-year-old Giordano said. Elias Lindholm is also riding a five-game point streak (one goal, six assists) heading into the matchup with Detroit, against which he scored a goal and set up two others in the first encounter.
OVERTIME
1. Calgary announced on Thursday that it will retire former captain Jarome Iginla's No. 12 jersey on March 2.
2. Larkin saw his 14-game point streak halted versus the Flames, but has rebounded with one goal and five assists in his last six outings to boost his team-leading point total to 45.
3. Calgary C Sean Monahan has 18 points (four goals, 14 assists) in his last 11 contests, including a goal and an assist against Detroit on Jan. 2.