5 THINGS - FLAMES VS. PANTHERS
The Flames look to get back in the win column tonight against Bennett and the Cats
Video: Brendan Parker sets up tonight's tilt
NEED-TO-KNOW
ONLINE 50/50
Purchase your online 50/50 tickets for a chance at some big cash!
GAME DAY VIDEO
Game Day with Brendan Parker
Pregame Interviews
GAME DAY FEATURES
Coleman: 'Urgency is Now'
Say What - 'Have More to Offer'
Projected Lineup
STAT PACK
Media Game Notes
Scoring Leaders
2019-20 Head-to-Head Stats
WANT TO WIN SOME CASH?!
https://www.nhl.com/flames/community/50-50
Leading Scorers:
Flames:
Points - Johnny Gaudreau (39)
Goals - Andrew Mangiapane (18)
Panthers:
Points - Jonathan Huberdeau (53)
Goals - Anthony Duclair (16)
Special Teams:
Flames:
PP - 21.2% (11th) / PK - 84.2% (5th)
Panthers:
PP - 19.7% (16th) / PK - 81.2% (13th)
Advanced Stats:
Flames:
Shot Attempts: 53.68% (4th)
High-Danger Chances: 53.49% (8th)
Panthers:
Shot Attempts: 56.51% (1st)
High-Danger Chances: 54.49% (4th)
Focus, forward.
The Flames know they can't change the past. But they can control the future.
While no one is happy about their current predicament - a four-game slide, prolonged by a 4-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators last Thursday - the belief has never wavered.
"We're a good hockey team," Erik Gudbranson said following Monday's practice. "We're not playing up to our potential right now, but we know teams take us very seriously. The last few (opponents) have almost taken us almost more seriously than we have. We need to hold ourselves to that standard. We haven't been content in this room. It hasn't necessarily been fun and games in this rink like it was.
"We've been working and looking ourselves in the mirror quite a bit, and at the end of the day, we need to come out (tonight) with a big effort.
"The most exciting part about this whole week is the opportunity to we have to play, arguably, the best team in the NHL and challenge ourselves for that after a week of practice, so we're excited for that."
The Flames are currently in a run of playing only three games in 14 days.
The breaks are getting a bit shorter now, but the group will have to manage another three-day doze following tonight's tilt before facing off with the Oilers on Saturday in Edmonton. Then - and only then - will the schedule return to its usual cadence of games every 48 hours (or so).
It's not an excuse, but it is the reality for a team looking to string together some games and build momentum.
"Our coaching staff has done a good job of creating game-like situations for us in practices in the last few days and between games," said Erik Gudbranson. "That's the big thing. It's so hard to re-create what actually happens in the middle of the game when another guy is really trying to take your head off, or steal the puck from you with everything he's got.
"But we're trying to create that in practice and keep it as tight as possible. (Monday) was another one.
"It was a tough practice and I'm glad we did it."
It was quite a scene.
More than 15,000 rose to their feet and serenaded their team with chants of 'We Want 10! We Want 10!'
Twice.
Twenty-five hours apart.
While nothing about this game comes 'easy' - even for the most talented among them - there's only one word to describe this ridiculous Jonathan Huberdeau-led offence: Explosive.
The Cats cruised to a 7-1 rout over the Dallas Stars on Friday, followed by a 9-2 drubbing of the Columbus Blue Jackets the very next night. This, after hanging nine on the defending Cup champs only a few weeks earlier, and leading the Eastern Conference with an average of 4.13 goals per game.
"They didn't stop the whole game," Panthers interim head coach Andrew Brunette told reporters after Saturday's win. "The energy from the guys was phenomenal and it was fun to be a part of it."
Twelve different Cats found the sheet that night, including defenceman MacKenzie Weegar, who had a goal and three helpers to pace the team offensively.
Seven others had multi-point efforts, while Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 28 of the 30 shots he faced.
"I think confidence is a big thing in the NHL, and I can tell you firsthand that every guy in that room has a lot of confidence," Weegar said. "All four lines, all six D, Bob (Bobrovsky) and Knighter (Spencer Knight), we all have a lot of confidence right now.
"Even the coaching staff has a lot of confidence back there. They've done a great job getting us ready and making adjustments throughout the game."
Huberdeau leads the team and is tied for third in the league with 53 points (15G, 38A). But the Panthers' attack is incredibly well balanced, and six others (Aaron Ekblad, Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Reinhart, Anthony Duclair, Aleksander Barkov and Weegar) have already crossed the 25-point threshold less than halfway through the season.
Former Flame Sam Bennett - who missed the previous meeting due to a three-game suspension - is also putting up numbers, with 15 goals (tied with Huberdeau for second on the team) and 23 points in 29 games.
Most importantly, their goaltending has been elite, with Bobrovsky boasting a 19-3-3 record, along with a .921 save percentage and a 2.47 goals-against average.
The Panthers are 8-0-1 in their last nine and currently sit atop the overall standings with 26 wins and 57 points.
"We know they're a fast team, they've been scoring a lot," said Chris Tanev. "We know their firepower, we know they're a very strong offensive team with a lot of skilled players, so we need to be connected defensively and play with the puck.
"We can't let them dictate the game."
DID YOU KNOW? Mikael Backlund has the third-most points against the Panthers in Flames franchise history with 13 (5G, 8A) in 15 meetings. The others: 1. Mark Giordano - 18 points (6G, 12A), 2. Jarome Iginla - 15 points (8G, 7A). Matthew Tkachuk and Sean Monahan are tied for the fourth-most in franchise history with 11 points.
CENTURY CLUB: Andrew Mangiapane is only two points away from 100 in his career. He enters the night with 61 goals and 37 helpers in 212 career games, and currently leads the Flames with 18 tucks on the year.
CAT SCRATCH FEVER: The Flames are 4-1-0 in their last five games against the Panthers at the Scotiabank Saddledome, winning their last game at the 'Dome on Oct. 24, 2019, in a shootout.
Flames - Matthew Tkachuk
Tkachuk enters the night with 10 points (5G, 5A) in his last seven games and has goals in back-to-back outings.
The 24-year-old leads all skaters in goals at the 'Dome this year with eight, and has 11 points overall on home ice, tying him with Johnny Gaudreau and Elias Lindholm for the clubhouse lead.
Panthers - Sam Bennett
Bennett will be getting his first crack at his old team tonight after being traded from the Flames on April 12, 2021.
"I have no hard feelings with Calgary, and I hope all the people in Calgary feel the same way," Bennett told Wes Gilbertson of Postmedia. "I think that's just part of life - you move on sometimes. Sometimes, it's for the best.
"It really has been a great fit for me. As soon as I got to Florida, I think I found chemistry early with the guys. It's just worked out and I've really been enjoying my time."
Bennett, who was the drafted in the first round - fourth overall - in 2014, had 67 goals, 140 points and 319 penalty minutes in 402 career spins in Calgary.
Noah Hanifin on the players challenging each other to be better:
"It starts right now in the practices. Each individual. It's a collective group effort, but each individual needs to find a way to get to that next level for the team and push each other in practice. That's something that we, as a group - you know, we all love each other. We're brothers in here. But we can push each other a bit more and get on each other in a positive manner to get that emotion up and get that compete up in games. That's on each of us to do that."
