Coyotes at Flames
THE STORY: The Phoenix Coyotes and Calgary Flames both look to stay in the thick of things in the Western Conference playoff picture when they square off at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Thursday. Phoenix is in seventh place, one point ahead of Colorado, and Calgary trails the Avalanche by two points. The Coyotes have lost six of their last eight contests while the Flames enter with a three-game winning streak.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, FSN Arizona Plus (Phoenix), Rogers Sportsnet West (Calgary)
ABOUT THE COYOTES (35-25-11): David Schlemko returned to the lineup in Wednesday's victory at Vancouver after missing 28 games with a lower-body injury. The defenseman registered one shot on goal and a minus-1 rating in just over 17 minutes of ice time. Captain Shane Doan halted an eight-game goalless drought against the Canucks, but Radim Vrbata has failed to score in 11 straight contests.
ABOUT THE FLAMES (33-25-12): Captain Jarome Iginla scored his 30th goal in Tuesday's victory over San Jose. He became the seventh player in NHL history to reach the plateau in 11 straight seasons. Iginla is in the midst of a seven-game points streak during which he has registered seven tallies and 13 assists. Curtis Glencross cost himself the chance to extend his goal-scoring streak Tuesday when he received a five-minute major for boarding and a game misconduct late in the first period. Glencross had tallied in each of his previous seven contests.
OVERTIME:
1. Calgary has lost 15 of its last 21 games against Pacific Division opponents.
2. The Coyotes have dropped nine of 14 on the road.