Flames Vs. Penguins: M&G GameTime Preview

In tonight's NHL action, Calgary will host the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second of two matchups this season. Pittsburgh won the first, 4-3 on December 21st in Pittsburgh.

The Flames are the victims of an unfortunate cold-spell where they've scored five goals in their last seven games. Four of those goals came in their only win over the span, a 4-3 shootout win against the Colorado Avalanche on Monday. Tonight will be the second game of a short two-game homestand. Calgary lost the first, 5-0 to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night. After tonight's match, they'll play their next two on the road, as well as four of their next five. They'll face the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday and the Nashville Predators on Tuesday.

Pittsburgh will be closing out a three game road trip. They started the trip with a 5-4 shootout victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday and a win over the Edmonton Oilers last night. They'll head back to Pittsburgh for a three game stand against the Washington Capitals, the Florida Panthers, and the Montreal Canadiens.

Calgary last faced off with the Penguins on December 21st. Pascal Dupuis (7), Harry Zolnierczyk (1), Sidney Crosby (20), and Matt Niskanen (3) helped the Penguins to a 4-1 lead with a minute left in the second period. The Flames closed the gap to 4-3, but couldn't send the game to overtime. Paul Byron (2), Mike Cammalleri (11) and Jiri Hudler lit the lamp for the Flames. Karri Ramo stopped 19 shots to take a loss, while Marc-Andre Fleury made 27-of-30 saves for the Pittsburgh win. * Full Recap * Box Score

Flames @ Penguins Highlights 12/21/13 (via NHL)

Mike Cammalleri spoke later:

I liked some things about our game. The third period was strong, for sure. I thought we did a lot of good things and put some pressure on them and had some pretty close ones. Those are the bounces.

In Calgary's last match, they dropped a 5-0 decision to the St. Louis Blues. Jaroslav Halak stopped 33 shots for the Blues shutout, while Karri Ramo stopped 24-of-29. Chris Stewart (15), Vladimir Sobotka (7), Ian Cole (2), Alex Pietrangelo (PP, 6), and Vladimir Tarasenko (PP, 15) provided the Blues' firepower. * Full Recap * Box Score

Blues @ Flames Highlights 01/09/14 (via NHL)

It [stinks]. We can't score goals in this building, for whatever reason. We have to dig down. Enough is enough. We can't be satisfied just with good chances. We have to score. It's the NHL — you can't win in this league if you don't score.

St. Louis Game Time has all the Blues you can handle.

Last night, the Penguins had the Oilers well in hand with a 3-2 lead just two minutes before the end of regulation. Anton Belev (1) sent it to an extra frame, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (12, 13) put it away a minute into the extra frame. Taylor Hall (17) also lit the lamp for Edmonton. Pittsburgh's markers were scored by James Neal (17), Sidney Crosby (25), and Kris Letang (8). Devan Dubnyk stopped 25-of-28 shots for the win, while Jeff Zatkoff turned 27-of-31 aside. *Full Recap * Box Score

Pittsburgh Penguins @ Edmonton Oilers 1/10/14 [HD] (via MCProMiners)

Sidney Crosby spoke later to the assorted media:

We just didn't match their desperation. Being up by two goals, obviously we need to find a way to close that game out. We knew they were going to come out hard for the third and we still let them get even. Then we took the lead and lost it again. You don't deserve to win games when you do that.

Go to Copper and Blue for anything Oilers related.

GameTime: 8:00 PM MST

TV: CBC, ROOT

Season Series: Calgary looks to earn a split tonight after dropping the first game last month.

All-Time Series: The Flames are 38-40-19 versus the Pens, good for a .490 winning percentage.

Standings

Flames: 15-23-6, .409, 36 points, on pace for 67 points. Sixth in the Pacific Divsion, 13th in the Western Conference, 28th in the NHL. Last Five: L-L-W-L-L, Playoff odds: .02%.

Penguins: 32-12-2, .717, 66 points, on pace for 118 points. First in the Metropolitan Division, first in the Eastern Conference, fourth in the NHL. Last five: L-W-W-W-O, Playoff odds: 99.99%.

This day in Flames history

Calgary is 6-10-5 on January 11th's throughout their history.

1974 - Flyers 7, Flames 6
1975 - Flames 2, Islanders 2
1976 - Canucks 5, Flames 2
1978 - Rockies (Devils) 4, Flames 2
1980 - Flames 4, Nordiques (Avalanche) 3
1981 - Black Hawks 2, Flames 1
1984 - Jets (Coyotes) 9, Flames 5
1985 - Nordiques 4, Flames 0
1987 - Oilers 5, Flames 3
1989 - Flames 8, Jets 3
1990 - Flames 5, Sabres 3
1991 - Capitals 4, Flames 2
1994 - Flames 1, Nordiques 0
1997 - Panthers 4, Flames 1
2001 - Flames 2, Predators 1
2002 - Thrashers (Jets) 1, Flames 0
2003 - Blue Jackets 7, Flames 2
2007 - Flames 7, Avalanche 3
2008 - Islanders 5, Flames 4, SO
2010 - Avalanche 3, Flames 2, SO
2011 - Hurricanes 6, Flames 5, SO

Most statistics courtesy of www.hockey-reference.com. Game recaps courtesy of www.nhl.com. Playoff odds courtesy of www.sportsclubstats.com.