Blackhawks at Flames
The league’s highest-scoring offense takes on the most porous defense when the Chicago Blackhawks visit the Calgary Flames on Wednesday. The reigning Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks, who have won three straight as they continue their seven-game road trip, lead the NHL in goals and boast four players with at least 20 points. The Flames, who won in overtime at Chicago on Nov. 3, have shown life with points in three straight games (2-0-1) after going winless in their previous six (0-5-1).
Patrick Kane looks to extend his point streak to 12 games for the Blackhawks and fellow right wing Marian Hossa is expected back after missing two games due to a personal matter. Reto Berra made 42 saves in his NHL debut to beat the Blackhawks earlier this month and has played in nine of the last 10 contests for the Flames. Calgary has given up a league-high 3.61 goals per game but won two shootouts in its last three contests.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, TSN, WGN (Chicago)
ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (17-4-4): Kane has produced six goals and nine assists during his streak, tallying twice on the power play in the last three games. Michal Handzus returned to the lineup in the 5-1 victory over Edmonton on Monday after missing 14 games with an upper-body injury and the Blackhawks should get a boost from Hossa, who has 17 points. Corey Crawford has a .943 save percentage in the last three contests, but coach Joel Quenneville said backup Antti Raanta could get his first start soon.
ABOUT THE FLAMES (8-11-4): Center Joe Colborne scored his second and third goals since being acquired from Toronto in the last two games, including the 4-3 shootout victory over Florida on Friday. “It’s nice to have some music going in the dressing room and some guys who are smiling again,” Colborne told reporters. “It’s just a big team win.” Jiri Hudler leads Calgary with 21 points, rookie center Sean Monahan has 14 in his first 23 games and fellow first-round pick Sven Baertschi has tallied four points in his last five games.
OVERTIME
1. Chicago’s Duncan Keith leads all defensemen and is tied for third overall in the league with 19 assists through Monday.
2. Calgary is last in the league in faceoff percentage at 44.9 percent, while Chicago is sixth at 52.6.
3. The Blackhawks have given up eight power-play goals in the last eight games and stood 29th in penalty killing (73.6 percent) through Monday.