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Calgary Flames

Preview: Will The Flames Losing Streak Reach Five?

The Flames are free falling and it’s not going to be easy to get out of this rut.

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Calgary Flames @ New York Islanders, 5 PM MT, UBS Arena, Belmont Park NY

Calgary Flames 5-4-1 (11 pts) – NY Islanders 7-5-0 (14 pts)

TV: SN1 – Radio: Sportsnet 960

Odds: Calgary Flames (-106) New York Islanders (-114) O/U: 6

How the Calgary Flames respond to their current streak of bad play will be telling as it’s not going to get easier for the boys from Alberta. The Flames have dropped four in a row, but will finally have the chance to get away from the Scotiabank Saddledome, a place where they’ve played nine out of their first ten games. And that cleanse of home begins tonight with a visit to the NY Islanders.

Things for the Flames are certainly trending downward and it’s not just the losses, it’s how they are happening. Calgary has looked listless, uninspired and they haven’t been playing smart at all (see Elias Lindholm’s OT penalty that didn’t do the Flames any favours). Calgary has been parading themselves to the penalty box, putting undue stress on their PK, which is now down some significant bodies.

The injury bug has hit the Flames hard on the blue line. Oliver Kylington is still missing from the Flames roster, out with a personal issue that hasn’t been elaborated on and there’s been no timetable for his return even remotely hinted at. And you can add Chris Tanev and Michael Stone to that list as well. Tanev has missed the last two Flames games and his absence has been noticeable. Michael Stone barely played in the Saturday night 4-3 OT loss to the Devils and now he’s been placed on IR as well. The Calgary defence core was the deepest part of the roster as the season started, but it’s now in shambles. Nikita Zadorov, Rasmus Andersson, Noah Hanifin and MacKenzie Weegar are all that’s left and Connor Mackey and Nick DeSimmon are going to have to do some heavy lifting.

There also appears to be some disfunction on the bench between the head coach and some players, as Mikael Backlund after he found himself stapled to the bench Saturday night in a head scratching move. It’s looking like stubbornness and egos are starting to clash and that’s not a good combination for a team that’s trying to find it’s footing after some off season roster moves.

The Islanders? They’re doing ok. They currently sit in 4th place in the Metropolitan and just suffered their first loss in five games. The Isles has won five straight and did so in pretty convincing fashion. New York outscored their opponents 22-8 during that streak, including a 3-0 shutout of the New York Rangers. The Islanders have only allowed four or more goals three times on the season and have scored four or more goals five times.

This won’t be an easy run for Calgary as they try to get back on track and put this losing streak behind them. With that said, the Flames are 6-4-0 in their last 10 against the Islanders and have won three in a row when visiting New York.

Head To Head
Calgary Flames NY Islanders
5-4-1 Record  7-5-0 
11  Points  14 
5th Pacific  Division  4th Metropolitan 
32  GF  41 
33  GA  30 
20.0 (19th)  PP 13.5 (29th) 
81.4 (11th)  PK  90.5 (3rd) 
Kadri (6)  Goals Leader Lee (6) 
Kadri (11)  Points Leader  Nelson (13) 
Zadorov (17)  PIM  Lee (21) 
Markstrom (.903)  Save%  Sorokin (.933) 
1-3-1  Last 5  4-1-0 
50-50-20  Overall VS  50-50-20 

Starting Goalies

Calgary: Markstrom (E)- 4-2-0, 2.68 GAA, .903 Sv%

New York: Sorokin (E)- 5-3-0, 2.03 GAA, .936 Sv%

Injury Report

Calgary: Stone (IR/Undisclosed), Tanev (Out/UBI), Kylington (IR/Personal)

New York: None

Game Social

@NHLFlames, #Flames, @NYIslanders, #Isles, @matchsticksCGY, @LHHockey, #CGYvsNYI

View From The Other Bench

SBN NY Islanders Coverage: Lighthouse Hockey

Last Time Out

Calgary Flames 3 – New Jersey Devils 4 (OT)

NY Islanders 0 – Detroit Red Wings 3

Players To Watch

Calgary Flames

Nikita Zadorov (D): 2 goals in last 3 games

NY Islanders

Matthew Barzal (C): 4 points last 5 games

by Mark Parkinson