The bottom two teams in the Western Conference square off Wednesday as the Calgary Flames host the Northwest Division-rival Colorado Avalanche. Calgary ranks 14th in the West and has just over a week to decide whether wants to trade long-time captain Jarome Iginla before next Wednesday's deadline. While their winless streak on the road reached a franchise-record 10 games (0-9-1) on Tuesday, the Flames enter their matchup with Colorado having won seven straight at home.
The Avalanche occupy the basement in the West, two points behind Calgary but only eight out of the conference's final playoff spot. Colorado has lost six of its last seven games, including a 3-2 home setback to the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday. The club owns the worst road record in the league at 2-10-3 and is winless in its last nine away from home (0-6-3) since posting a shootout victory at Minnesota on Feb. 14.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, Altitude (Colorado), TSN (Calgary)
ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (11-16-4): Colorado lost two players in Sunday's defeat as center Paul Stastny exited with a foot injury and defenseman Ryan Wilson went down with a recurring ankle issue. Stastny, who was injured blocking a shot, is expected to miss at least 10 days, while Wilson landed on injured reserve after a collision. The blue-liner had just returned from a four-game absence due to the injury, which he originally suffered on Feb. 2. Assistant coach David Quinn was named Jack Parker's replacement as coach at Boston University. Quinn will finish the season with the Avalanche before taking over the Terriers.
ABOUT THE FLAMES (12-15-4): Calgary's 10-game road skid eclipsed the franchise's previous record set in 1985-86, when it went 0-8-1 away from home. While Iginla continues to be the most talked-about player who could be on the move soon, Miikka Kiprusoff reportedly has made it known he won't be going anywhere, regardless of whether or not he's traded. Kiprusoff, whose wife gave birth to the couple's second child last week, claimed he won't report to a new team due to family reasons. "I try to help team here, try to win games," Kiprusoff told the Calgary Herald. "There's no reason to think about it. It's NHL. Every year, it's the same talk."
OVERTIME
1. Colorado has won its last four meetings with Calgary, including the previous two matchups this season.
2. Flames D Cory Sarich played in his 900th NHL game on Tuesday.
3. Calgary has not lost at home since dropping a 3-1 decision to Los Angeles on Feb. 20.
PREDICTION: Avalanche 3, Flames 2