Mark Giordano, Mikael Backlund lift Flames to win

CALGARY -- Mark Giordano scored twice, and Mikael Backlund had a goal and two assists to help the Calgary Flames to a 4-1 win against the Vancouver Canucks at Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday.
Dougie Hamilton and Michael Frolik each had two assists, and Matthew Tkachuk also scored for the Flames (18-16-2), who have won eight of the past 11 games, including two of the past five following a season-long six-game winning streak.

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"We had the streak and then we had a little bit of a lull here," Giordano said. "I felt like we haven't played our best the last few games. Tonight I thought we were solid throughout 60 minutes. You play like that and you're going to come out on the right end a lot of nights."

Nikita Tryamkin scored, and Jacob Markstrom made 33 saves for the Canucks (14-18-3), who have lost two in a row. They were defeated by the Winnipeg Jets 4-1 on Thursday. Vancouver is 4-11-1 through eight sets of back-to-back games this season.
"It wasn't a good game," Markstrom said. "I didn't think we played like we're capable of. Obviously it was a back-to-back with travel yesterday, but it's not our first time. Everybody that played here tonight has done it before. That was not how you want to end before you go on the Christmas break."
Giordano scored twice as part of a three-goal second period to put the Flames ahead 3-1.
He tied the game on the power play at 2:34, and scored Calgary's NHL-leading seventh shorthanded goal at 11:15.
"He was fantastic," Flames coach Glen Gulutzan said. "He was a dominant player tonight."
Backlund banked a rebound on Hamilton's point shot off Canucks defenseman Alex Biega and behind Markstrom to give Calgary a 3-1 lead at 18:07.

Flames goalie Brian Elliott made a pad save on Brandon Sutter's partial breakaway at 8:29 of the third period, and made consecutive stops on Henrik Sedin and Loui Eriksson seconds apart with four minutes to play.
Tkachuk scored into an empty net with 45.2 seconds remaining.
Elliott finished with 13 saves.
"It's tough for a goalie when they don't get a lot of action," Giordano said. "They had some good chances there late and he was really, really sharp I thought."
Tryamkin scored his first goal of the season 11:35 into the game to put Vancouver up 1-0 when his point shot deflected off Calgary forward Kris Versteeg in the slot and flipped over Elliott.
Troy Brouwer sustained an upper-body injury late in the first period and did not return.

Goal of the game

Giordano drove to the net to convert on Frolik's rebound for his second goal of the game, and second shorthanded goal of the season. "[Matt Stajan] was yelling at me to jump in," Giordano said. "He read the play. He was yelling 'three, three, go, go.' I just jumped in and got to the net and the puck just laid there for me."

Save of the game

Markstrom stopped Garnet Hathaway from eight feet on a chip shot with traffic around the net 5:20 into the game, one of his 16 first-period saves. "He was unbelievable," Sedin said. "The game could have been out of hand way earlier. He's been great for us lately."

Unsung performance of the game

Tryamkin's goal came 46 seconds after Markstrom stopped Backlund from 10 feet after a set-up from Tkachuk below the goal line, one of Markstrom's nine saves in the opening 11 minutes.

Highlight of the game

Giordano took a pass from Backlund after gaining the zone and shot over Markstrom's glove for his first of two goals. "Sometimes you feel you don't get any [chances]. Tonight it felt like it was sort of following me around there," Giordano said.

They said it

"We didn't have much. We were fortunate to get the first one. [Markstrom] played good for us and that's probably the only positive thing we had on the night." -- Canucks coach Willie Desjardins
"It makes life a little easier when you win your last game. Whether it's when you get a day off or a nice Christmas break and you get three [points]. It's always good to get those points and enjoy some time with your family with a little bit of pressure off." -- Flames coach Glen Gulutzan

Need to know

Elliott improved to 5-9-1 with his second win since Oct. 28. He has started four of the past 20 games for Calgary. … The Flames blocked 12 shots. … Tryamkin has two career NHL goals. Both have come in losses at Scotiabank Saddledome. … Forward Anton Rodin, who was selected by the Canucks in the second round (No. 53) of the 2009 NHL Draft, made his NHL debut.

What's next

Canucks: Host the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; SN, FS-W, NHL.TV)
Flames: At the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday (9 p.m. ET; ALT, SNW, NHL.TV)