Preview: Calgary Flames @ Edmonton Oilers 1/19/19 (50/82): Flames Look To Snap Losing Streak In Edmonton

Calgary Flames @ Edmonton Oilers, 8:00 PM MT, Rogers Place, Edmonton AB

TV: CBC, SN, SN1. SN360, CITY

Radio: Sportsnet 960

Calgary Flames 31-13-5 (67) – Edmonton Oilers 23-21-3 (49)

NHL Standings

The Flames home stand has come to an end as they will suit up tonight in Edmonton to take on the Oilers at Rogers Place. Calgary won their final home game with some third period heroics despite being down 4-3 with 11 minutes to go. The Flames got some scoring from their bottom 6 (James Neal and Sam Bennett) and ended up sneaking by the Detroit Red Wings 6-4 Friday night. The win added to Calgary’s point total and continued to pad their lead in the Western Conference. The Flames are still the top team with 67 points, three points ahead of second place Winnpeg. A win tonight against an Edmonton team that is trying to climb back into the Wild Card race would he huge on two levels. First, it pushes Edmonton further down in the standings and can add two points to Calgary’s lead in both the Pacific and the West. It also means the Flames would snap a five game losing skid in Edmonton.

The Oilers are in an interesting spot. They are 5th in the Pacific and are only one point out of the Wild Card. Both Dallas and Vancouver sit ahead of the Oilers, but both of them only have 50 points compared to Edmonton’s 49. The Oilers have climbed back into the playoff race with a 5-3-0 record in January, which on the surface seems failry average. But when you compare it to their six straight losses to end 2018, it’s a marked improvement. Edmonton has won three of their last four and the Flames would love nothing more than to hit the road for one game and take down their provencial rivals.

The Flames and Oilers have played twice so far this season and it’s a split with each team winning at their home rink. The Oilers took the last contest on December 9th with a 1-0 win at Rogers Place. The Flames only victory came on Novermber 17th when the defeated the Oilers at the Saddledome 4-2. There’s only two more Battle Of Alberta games during the regular season after tonight, with the final game being on April 6th. The significance? It’s the final regular season game for both teams and playoff spots could be on the line.

Starting Goalies (E=Expected, C=Confirmed)

Flames: Rittich (E)- 17-4-4, 2.50 GAA, .917 Save%

Oilers: Koskinen (E)- 14-8-1, 2.65 GAA, .915 Save%

Team Leaders

Flames: Goals- Gaudreau (28), Points- Gaudreau (72), PIM- Bennett (72), Save%- Rittich (.917)

Oilers: Goals- McDavid (29), Points- McDavid (70), PIM- Kassian (76), Save%- Koskinen (.915%)

What’s Happening With The Opposition?

Edmonton Oilers Coverage: Copper And Blue

Last Time Out

Calgary Flames 6- Detroit Red Wings 4

Edmonton Oilers 3 – Vancouver Canucks 2 (SO)

Players To Watch

Calgary Flames

Sam Bennett (F): 9G- 10A, 5 points in last 5 games

Edmonton Oilers

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (C): 15G – 29A, 5 points in last 5 games

by Mark Parkinson