Calgary Flames vs Columbus Blue Jackets Preview 1/21/2016 (44/82)

Calgary Flames @ Columbus Blue Jackets 7 PM ET, Nationwide Arena, Columbus OH

I imagine this game promo being done in the Monster Truck Guy voice: THURSDAY! THURSDAY! THURSDAY! FLAMES! BLUE JACKETS! HARTLEY V TORTORELLA!" Ok, now that that's out of the way, on to the preview. Calgary is falling and falling fast in the West. The Flames need to stop the bleeding and do it quickly. Calgary's loss to NJ Tuesday night dropped the Flames record on the East coast to 1-7 this season. And this was supposed to be the "easier" part of the schedule. Karri Ramo makes his return to the net tonight for the Flames after having a 3 game rest where the Flames went 1-2.

The Flames leave the scenic downtown area of Newark NJ for Columbus OH…and it hasn't been pretty here for the boys from Alberta. Calgary trails the all time series 23-28-0, but in Columbus it's much worse: 9-17-0. The Flames are 1-4 in their last 5 against the Blue Jackets, but haven't lost by more than 2 goals in each of the losses. So it's not like it's hopeless, the Flames just need to get in gear and start winning. Turning their fortunes around in Columbus would do a lot to get this team back on track AND get that Columbus monkey off their back's. No one has given up more goals this season than Torts' squad, so this team is ripe for the picking. Here's a look at how the teams match-up:

Calgary lasted skated Tuesday night and lost to the NJ Devils 4-2. As bad as a loss as this was, it wasn’t all terrible. Calgary managed 2, count them 2! power play goals and still managed to lose. Johnny Gaudreau got two helpers and Sam Bennett continued his hot streak. Here’s the highlights:

The Blue Jackets last took to the ice on Tuesday night and were beaten down by the Washington Capitols, 6-3. Sergei Bobrovsky gave up 5 goals on 27 shots and old Flames friend Rene Bourque picked up an assist in the contest. Here’s the highlights:

Calgary Flames Projected Lineup (these are the projected lines and can be changed any time before the puck drop)

Scratches: Josh Jooris, Joe Colborne

Injuries: Lance Bouma.

Columbus Blue Jackets Projected Lineup (these are the projected lines and can be changed any time before the puck drop)

Scratches: None

Injuries: Curtis McElhinney, David Clarkson, Matt Calvert, Nick Foligno, David Savard

by Mark Parkinson