Follow me on Twitter @ToddCordell
The Calgary Flames begin preseason play tonight as they will take on the Edmonton Oilers in a pair of split squad games.
Both games are scheduled for 9 pm eastern and will be streamed on CalgaryFlames.com.
Here is the lineup they'll go with in Calgary:
Matthew Tkachuk - Sam Bennett - Troy Brouwer
Hunter Shinkaruk - Matt Stajan - Alex Chiasson
Brandon Bollig - Dillon Dube - Morgan Klimchuk
Eetu Tuulola - Ryan Lomberg - Austin Carroll
Mark Giordano - T.J. Brodie
Jyrki Jokipakka - Dennis Wideman
Oliver Kylington - Deryk Engelland
Brian Elliott
Mason McDonald
And in Edmonton:
Lance Bouma - Freddie Hamilton - Micheal Ferland
Chris Higgins - Linden Vey - Emile Poirier
Brett Pollock - Matt Bailey - Garnet Hathaway
Lauri Korpikoski - Mark Jankowski - Matt Frattin
Dougie Hamilton - Tyler Wotherspoon
Brett Kulak - Rasmus Andersson
Nicklas Grossman - Kenney Morrison
Jon Gillies
Chad Johnson
David Rittich
Notes:
1) Matthew Tkachuk will be playing in his first meaningful game as a Calgary Flame (the Young Stars tournament was a tuneup for him). There is a spot for the taking on the wing in the top-6 (or top-9) and it sounds like he'll be given every opportunity to make the team out of camp. He just has to take advantage of it.
2) It'd be really nice to see a strong showing from Sam Bennett at center. If he can handle that role full time the Flames will be very dangerous with a 1-2-3 punch of Sean Monahan, Mikael Backlund and Bennett down the middle.
3) Tonight's game in Edmonton will be important for camp invites Chris Higgins, Lauri Korpikoski, Matt Frattin and Nicklas Grossman. The Flames have a ton of guys in camp right now and usually teams don't waste too much time trimming down the roster to a reasonable number. If they don't perform well they won't be sticking around too long.
Recent posts:
Training camp thoughts
Ladislav Smid ruled out for 2016-17 season
Dougie Hamilton's debut season in Calgary better than given credit for
Pacific Division bold predictions
Hotstove: Pacific Division breakout players
A look at how Flames' players are rated in NHL 17
Three question marks for the Flames heading into the 2016-17 season
Michael Ferland should score more next season
Calgary Flames Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»