5 THINGS - FLAMES @ BLUES

FLAMES (19-14-9) @ BLUES (21-18-3)

6 p.m. MT | TV: Sportsnet West | RADIO: Sportsnet 960 The FAN

2022-23 Season Series: 0-1-1

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GAME DAY VIDEO
Game Day with Brendan Parker
Pregame Interviews
GAME DAY FEATURES
'Better Be On Top Of Them'
Projected Lineup
STAT PACK
Media Game Notes
Scoring Leaders
2022-23 Head-to-Head Stats
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Leading Scorers:
Flames:
Points - Elias Lindholm (37)
Goals - Nazem Kadri (16)
Blues:
Points - Jordan Kyrou (41)
Goals - Jordan Kyrou (20)
Special Teams:
Flames:
PP - 19.4% (25th) / PK - 81.5% (9th)
Blues:
PP - 24.6% (10th) / PK - 73.1% (26th)
Advanced Stats:
Flames:
Shot Attempts: 55.66% (2nd)
High-Danger Chances: 51.69% (14th)
Blues:
Shot Attempts: 45.60% (28th)
High-Danger Chances: 45.52% (24th)
###

1. 'ARCH' ENEMIES
   Learn from it, yes.
   But then park it - and immediately move on.
   With this unique, two-game set drawing parallels to a bitter, springtime playoff series, having anything but a short memory is a complete waste of energy.
   You simply can't let the disappointment fester any longer than it has to.
   "It obviously sucks. That's not the way we wanted to end the game," Nazem Kadri said in the moment following a 4-3 overtime loss to the Blues on Tuesday. "To be quite honest, I thought we played a pretty solid road game. Had a lapse of five minutes and the good players don't need many chances to score and they made us pay."
   It's true, the Flames likely deserved a better - if you go by their showing in the opening two periods. But as Kadri alluded to, 55 good minutes aren't enough these days. It certainly proved costly in this case, with the visitors allowing a pair of goals only 28 seconds apart early in the third period, turning a 3-1 lead into a total momentum-shifter for their hungry, Missouri hosts.
   You could sense the Flames were a bit shell-shocked. The Blues then had the better of the play down the stretch and into overtime, where Robert Thomas sealed the deal by converting a pass on a 2-on-1 with Jordan Kyrou, after the Flames turned the puck over and sent the homeside off in transition.
   Milan Lucic, Mikael Backlund and Andrew Mangiapane all scored for the Flames, while Jacob Markstrom made 23 stops.
   So, what do we make of the fact that the Flames have now dropped two straight in OT to open what Lucic labelled their "most important road trip of the season?"
   "Got to take the point on the road," said Head Coach Darryl Sutter. "Take it. That's the best way to look it."
   In the end, with two of a possible four points, it's the equivalent of a win and a loss.
   Even if it doesn't feel that way.

2. KNOW YOUR ENEMY
The Blues are now 4-1-0 to start the New Year and after going 1-for-2 on the powerplay the other night, they're now clipping along at a league-leading 46.2% in these five games.
As a result, they briefly pulled into a tie with the Oilers for the final wild-card playoff spot with a 21-18-3 record for 45 points, but have since fallen two points back with Edmonton's on on Wednesday in Anaheim.
This, despite a host of injuries to key players, including Vladimir Tarasenko, Ryan O'Reilly, Torey Krug, Robert Bortuzzo, Nick Leddy and Marco Scandella.
"We kind of looked at each other going up the ice and I had a pretty good idea of what (Kyrou) was planning on doing," Thomas said of his OT winner. "Great play by him and I just had to get it upstairs."
The Flames outshot the Blues 25-18 and were clearly the better team through 40 minutes, but goals by Nikita Alexandrov and Kyrou set the Blues off on one their better periods of the season, capped by the Kyrou-Thomas connection only 28 ticks into overtime.
"Just our effort," Kyrou said of what changed at the intermission. "In the third period, we started bringing more, started competing, working harder, skating harder. We got off to a slow start coming off that road trip, but that was it. Big goal by Nikita, that got all the boys going and we just rolled with it."

3. FAST FACTS
DUEHR'S DEBUT:
Walker Duehr made his season debut on Tuesday, skating in his second-career NHL game. The Sioux Falls, SD native played a shade under 13 minutes and was slotted on right wing with Trevor Lewis and former Stockton Heat teammate Adam Ruzicka. Duehr made his NHL debut last season in Ottawa, where he had 14 shifts totalling 8:47 of ice time.
DID YOU KNOW?
The Flames have fired 1,458 shots on goal this season, the third most in the NHL and the most among all Western Conference teams.
Stick tap to Flames Communications Coordinator Jordan Bay for compiling these notes.
Follow him and the Flames PR team @FlamesPR on Twitter for more.
### 4. PLAYERS TO WATCH
Flames - Mikael Backlund
Is there an echo in here?
For what seemed like the 20th time this year, Backlund, Blake Coleman and Andrew Mangiapane were leading the charge their relentless play on the cycle.
And again, it led to some crucial offence.
Backlund scored his ninth goal of the season and with it, he now ranks ninth in road goals in franchise history (89), passing Johnny Gaudreau. Backlund has scored five of his nine goals away from the Scotiabank Saddledome so far this season, and is just one away from passing his six road goals from 2021-22.

Blues - Robert Thomas
Who else?
After all, it's not this writer's opinion - but Sutter's.
"We had a hard time handling the Thomas line," the coach lamented after the sniper put home the OT winner on Tuesday. "Scored the powerplay goal to start. Scored the third goal against our veteran top line. And then they scored in overtime. I'd say that's the whole game."
Thomas, who finished with a goal and an assist, even scored one that was called back due to an offside challenge.
When you talk a player having his fingerprints all over a game, that was Exhibit A.
Thomas, along with his linemates Pavel Buchnevich and leading Jordan Kyrou, were a thorn in the side of the Flames all night, finishing with a dominant possession rate, while controlling 87.50% (7-1) of the scoring chances and 100% (3-0) of the high-danger looks when they were on the ice, 5-on-5.
### 5. QUOTABLE
Nazem Kadri on the Flames' 2-6 record in overtime:
"It's challenging for us, it seems, but I think that can be a little deceiving as well. We've allowed a few powerplay goals in overtime and that certainly doesn't help the stats, so for us, it's trying to close the game before overtime. When it goes to overtime, it's anyone games - 3-on-3 - and we've got to do a better job before that."
The Flames are one of four teams in the NHL this year with 12 or more overtime appearances.