M&G Gametime Preview: Blackhawks visit Calgary

Tonight at 7PM, the Flames (12-6-2) will host the Chicago Blackhawks (10-7-1) in the Scotiabank Saddledome, in Calgary, AB. This will mark the second of three games between the two clubs this season. Calgary won the first, 2-1 in overtime on October 15th. They'll visit Chicago to close the series on December 14th. The Flames are in the fourth game of a five-game homestand. They've done well so far, topping the Arizona Coyotes 5-3 on Thursday, the Ottawa Senators 4-2 on Saturday, and the Anaheim Ducks, 4-3 in the shootout on Tuesday. They'll finish up on Saturday, against the New Jersey Devils. Chicago is opening a six-game roadtrip tonight. They'll go on to visit the Edmonton Oilers, the Vancouver Canucks, the the Colorado Avalanche, the Anaheim Ducks, and the Los Angeles Kings before returning to the Windy City.

The last time Calgary played Chicago was on October 15th. The 2-2 Flames ended up defeating the 2-0 Blackhawks, 2-1 in overtime. Dennis Wideman (1) scored off a Joe Colborne pass in the second, and Chicago answered with six minutes left in regulation with an Andrew Shaw power play goal (2). Jonas Hiller ended up making 49 saves, while his counterpart Corey Crawford let in two goals on 18 shots. That last goal came courtesy of Mikael Backlund, who wired it home with 25 seconds left in sudden death overtime. * Box Score * Full Recap

Good ending. That's almost like a golf game. Our drive went in the woods, but we took a stroke and we found a way to [make] par. - Flames coach Bob Hartley

Second City Hockey has more on the Blackhawks.

Calgary's last contest would see the Flames take a 4-3 shootout win over the Anaheim Ducks. Anaheim jumped out to a 2-0 lead behind goals from Sami Vatanen (5) and Matt Beleskey (PP, 8) before the Flames reeled off three straight markers in the third frame. Jiri Hudler (6) and Dennis Wideman (6, 7) provided the offense. Markus Granlund assisted on two of them. Kyle Palmieri (PP, 1) scored the equalizer with less than five minutes left in regulation. Frederik Andersen (16 saves) matched Jonas Hiller (24 saves) through 65 minutes of hockey. The shootout would see John Gaudreau and Sean Monahan light the lamp for the Flames, and only Ryan Kesler for the Ducks. * Box Score * Full Recap

I think everyone in here is believing that we can turn games around. A lot of times, third periods have been our best periods. It shows the character of this team. - Jonas Hiller, who played with the Ducks for seven seasons.

If you'd like to read up on the Ducks, Anaheim Calling has all you need.

The Blackhawks haven’t played since Sunday, when they defeated the Dallas Stars 6-2. Kris Versteeg (5) and Patrick Kane (6) each had a goal and two assists, Duncan Keith (4) and Jonathan Toews (7) each had a marker and a helper, Marian Hossa and Brad Richards each earned two assists, and Brandon Saad (3) and Brent Seabrook (PP, 4) also lit the lamp for Chicago. Curtis McKenzie (1) and Shawn Horcoff (3) provided the offense for the Stars. Corey Crawford earned the win with 22 saves, while Kari Lehtonen allowed six goals on 47 shots for the loss. * Box Score * Full Recap

It was a great game to be involved in, obviously with what happened personally but also with how the team responded to a little adversity early. We responded good, stayed patient and took control of the game. - Richards, who was playing in his 1,000th game.

More on the Stars can be found at Defending Big D.

GameTime: 7PM ET

Where2Watch: CSN-CH, SNF

All-Time Statline: The Flames are batting .500 all-time against Chicago, going 64-64-31 since joining the NHL in 1972 as the Atlanta Flames.

Current Standings

Calgary Flames: 12-6-2, .650, 26 points, on pace for 107 points. Third in the Pacific Division, fifth in the Western Conference, ninth in the NHL. Last Five: W-L-W-W-W. Playoff Odds: 85.7%

Chicago Blackhawks: 10-7-1, .583, 21 points, on pace for 96 points. Fourth in the Central Division, eighth in the Western Conference, 15th in the NHL.

Common Thread

M&G whipping boy Brandon Bollig played parts of three seasons with Chicago. Last season, he had seven goals and 14 total points while playing in all 82 games for the Blackhawks.

Birthdays

Bob Murdoch, former all-star defenceman, played 262 games over four seasons with the Atlanta/Calgary Flames. He totaled 16 goals and 63 assists while with the team from 1978 through 1982. He turns 68 today.

The only current NHL player to be born today is Montreal Canadien Max Pacioretty, who is turning 26. In seven NHL seasons, all with the Habs, he has totaled 115 goals and 229 points. He won the Masterton Trophy in 2012 and led the league with 11 game winning goals in 2013-14.

Elsewhere

Minnesota Wild vs. Philadelphia Flyers, 5PM
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Toronto Maple Leafs, 5:30PM
St. Louis Blues vs. Montreal Canadiens, 5:30PM
Nashville Predators vs. Ottawa Senators, 5:30PM
Detroit Red Wings vs. Winnipeg Jets, 6PM
Arizona Coyotes vs. Dallas Stars, 6:30PM
Washington Capitals vs. Colorado Avalanche, 7PM
Anaheim Ducks vs. Vancouver Canucks, 8PM
Carolina Hurricanes vs. Los Angeles Kings, 8:30PM
Florida Panthers vs. San Jose Sharks, 8:30PM

This Day in Flames History

Calgary is 5-7-2 on November 20th, including an 18-save shutout courtesy of Miikka Kiprusoff in 2008 in a 1-0 win over the Colorado Avalanche, 1-0.

1974 - Flames 1, Scouts 0
1977 - Flyers 4, Flames 0
1980 - Capitals 4, Flames 2
1982 - Flames 4, Whalers 4
1986 - Penguins 5, Flames 2
1989 - Canadiens 3, Flames 2
1993 - Stars 4, Flames 3
1996 - Stars 3, Flames 1
1997 - Flames 2, Panthers 1
2001 - Flames 5, Kings 5
2003 - Flames 2, Canadiens 1
2007 - Flames 4, Avalanche 1
2008 - Flames 1, Avalanche 0
2013 - Blue Jackets 2, Flames 1

Probable Starting Lineups

* will probably change after the morning skate

Calgary Flames

Line 1	Curtis Glencross	Sean Monahan	Lance Bouma
Line 2	Johnny Gaudreau	Markus Granlund	Jiri Hudler
Line 3	Michael Ferland	Josh Jooris	Paul Byron
Line 4	Brandon Bollig	Max Reinhart	Sven Baertschi
Defensive Pair 1	Mark Giordano	TJ Brodie
Defensive Pair 2	Ladislav Smid	Dennis Wideman
Defensive Pair 3	Raphael Diaz	Deryk Engelland
Starting Goalie	Jonas Hiller
Reserve Goalie	Karri Ramo

Chicago Blackhawks

Line 1	Brandon Saad	Jonathan Toews	Marian Hossa
Line 2	Kris Versteeg	Brad Richards	Patrick Kane
Line 3	Bryan Bickell	Andrew Shaw	Dan Carcillo
Line 4	Joakim Nordstrom	Marcus Kruger	Ben Smith
Defensive Pair 1	Duncan Keith	Brent Seabrook
Defensive Pair 2	Niklas Hjalmarsson	Johnny Oduya
Defensive Pair 3	David Sundblad	Michal Rozsival
Starting Goalie	Corey Crawford
Reserve Goalie	Scott Darling

Flames Leaders

Average Time on Ice (Blueliners): TJ Brodie - 25:05, Mark Giordano - 24:09
(Forwards): Sean Monahan - 18:35, Curtis Glencross - 17:51, Jiri Hudler - 17:32

Goals: Dennis Wideman, Sean Monahan - 7, Mark Giordano, Jiri Hudler - 6

Assists: Mark Giordano - 15, TJ Brodie - 12, John Gaudreau - 10

Points: Mark Giordano - 21, TJ Brodie - 16, Jiri Hudler - 15

Plus/Minus: TJ Brodie - plus-11, Mark Giordano, John Gaudreau - 9

Penalty Minutes: Deryk Engelland - 28, Brandon Bollig - 27, Curtis Glencross - 24

Shots-on-Goal: Sean Monahan - 50, Mark Giordano - 49, Dennis Wideman - 39

Faceoffs: Sean Monahan (207-for-401) - 51.6%, Josh Jooris (46-for-98) - 46.9%, Paul Byron (31-for-84) - 36.9%

Hits: Lance Bouma - 52, Curtis Glencross - 44, Paul Byron - 35

Blocked Shots: Kris Russell - 56, Mark Giordano - 47, Dennis Wideman - 39

Offensive Point Shares: Mark Giordano - 2.4, TJ Brodie - 1.6, Dennis Wideman - 1.5

Defensive Point Shares: TJ Brodie - 1.8, Mark Giordano - 1.6, Kris Russell - 1.1

Goalie Point Shares: Jonas Hiller - 2.7, Karri Ramo - 0.9

Total Point Shares: Mark Giordano - 3.9, TJ Brodie - 3.4, Dennis Wideman - 2.7

Remember to check back here for the game thread just before the puck drops, and tune in later for the postgame.