The Calgary Flames are coming off a very impressive 3-2 overtime victory against the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday night. It was a spectacular debut for 26-year-old Swiss goaltender Reto Berra, who made 42 saves to backstop the Flames to their first win at the United Center in more than five years. Kris Russell scored the overtime winner giving Calgary a well deserved victory, despite being outshot 44-30 over the course of the game.
Tonight, the Flames continue their four game trip with a trip into Minnesota (6 pm, Sporstnet West and Sportsnet 960). For the first time, these two teams will face one another not as division rivals. Since their inception in 2000-2001, the Wild had been a member of the Northwest Division along with Calgary; that all changed for this season thanks to realignment. Minnesota now plays in the Central Division where things make a whole lot more sense for them geographically.
Calgary Flames 6-6-2, 6th Pacific Division
- Curtis Glencross-Matt Stajan-David Jones
- Mike Cammalleri-Joe Colborne-TJ Galiardi
- Lance Bouma-Sean Monahan-Jiri Hudler
- Tim Jackman-Mikael Backlund-Brian McGrattan
- Chris Butler-TJ Brodie
- Kris Russell-Dennis Wideman
- Chad Billins-Shane O’Brien
All eyes will be on Berra once again, as he’ll make his second NHL start against the Wild. His 42 save effort against the Blackhawks was very impressive and more than earned him another shot tonight. More impressive was how the Flames played in front of him, as they put together a fairly decent game, regardless of what the shot clock might suggest. Calgary hasn’t always played well in front of fresh faced goalies, as names like Curtis McElhinney, Henrik Karlsson, and Leland Irving could attest to. The fact the Flames played well on Sunday was a positive, and Berra backed them up with a very nice effort.
The Flames will remove Sven Baertschi from the lineup once again, the second time this season Head Coach Bob Hartley will make him a healthy scratch. It’s another head scratching move as Baertschi saw his ice time dwindle in the latter half of Sunday’s game in Chicago. Billins will make his NHL debut on the Calgary blueline tonight after leading the Abbotsford Heat with five goals in his first year with the organization. Derek Smith will be a healthy scratch as a result.
Russell’s overtime winner extended his point streak to four games and continued his nice run of play to start his first season in Calgary. The Flames acquired him from St. Louis during the offseason for a fifth round pick and are getting very good value for him early on. Russell is averaging just under 23 minutes of ice time per game and has points in seven of his last nine games overall. He and Wideman have turned into a pretty dangerous duo in their short time together.
Also riding point streaks right now are Glencross and Stajan. The former pushed his string to four games on Sunday, scoring the temporary go-ahead goal early in the third period on a vintage wrist shot that went post and in. Stajan assisted on the goal, extending his streak to five games; he now has a point in every game he’s scored since returning to the lineup after missing seven games with a lower body injury.
And don’t forget about Cammalleri, who scored a very important goal against the Blackhawks. 50 seconds after Chicago opened the scoring in the second period, Cammalleri tipped home a Wideman shot for his fourth of the season, getting things back on equal terms in short order. Very quietly Cammalleri has four goals and seven points in seven games and is one of only two Flames players averaging at least a point per game (the other being Hudler).
Minnesota Wild 8-4-3, 3rd Central Division
- Zach Parise-Mikko Koivu-Charlie Coyle
- Nino Neiderreiter-Mikael Granlund-Jason Pominville
- Matt Cooke-Kyle Brodziak-Justin Fontaine
- Dany Heatley-Zenon Konopka-Torrey Mitchell
- Ryan Suter-Jonas Brodin
- Marco Scandella-Jared Spurgeon
- Clayton Stoner-Keith Ballard
After a so-so start to the season, the Wild have turned it up a notch the last little while, winning five of their last six games. They’ve done it with contributions from all round and, more importantly, some very strong goaltending lead by Josh Harding. It was Harding posting the shutout on Sunday, making 19 saves to blank the New Jersey Devils 4-0. Overall, he’s 7-2-1 with a 1.10 goals against average and a 0.950 save percentage, and he’ll get the start in net tonight. Harding’s 0.971 save percentage at even strength is the best total in the league for goalies who have started more than ten games.
The Wild will get Coyle back in the lineup tonight after he missed a game with a sprained knee. Coyle’s return pushes Fontaine to the third line and Mitchell to the fourth line. Coyle has no points in three games overall this season.
The future looks bright in Minnesota, with a number of young players making early contributions. Sophomore Brodin leads the way, as he continues to log big minutes while still only a few months removed from turning 20. He’s second on the team in ice time, averaging 23:33 per game, second only to the league’s overall leader in Suter. Those two make a very formidable pairing that teams see a lot of of.
It’s not just Brodin, though. Granlund scored his first goal of the season against the Devils and has 11 points in 15 games to start his first NHL season. Neiderreiter has been pretty good in his first year with the Wild, too. After being acquired from the New York Islanders at the draft, the former fifth overall selection has thrived with new scenery, posting three goals and nine points.
Last but not least, the Wild wouldn’t be where they are without the contributions of Pominville. With six points last week, he was named the NHL’s first star and leads the team with ten goals and 12 points. We’re seeing exactly what Minnesota had hoped when they gave up a fair amount to bring him in from Buffalo at last year’s trade deadline. The Wild acquired Pominville and a 2014 fourth round pick in exchange for a 2013 first round pick (Nikita Zadorov), a 2014 second round pick, goaltending prospect Matt Hackett, and forward prospect Johan Larsson. It seems worth it so far this season.