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The Calgary Flames begin a three-game homestand tonight as they play host to the Winnipeg Jets.
Calgary enters this game as hot as anyone in the NHL having won 10 of their last 14 games and five straight.
The Jets, while currently holding down a playoff spot, have been going through some rough patches of late. They have only four wins in their last 10 games and have been near the bottom of the league in possession during that span.
Righting the ship against the Flames tonight will be difficult, especially away from home ice. The Jets have won just two of their last eight on the road and five of 15 on the year. They have struggled mightily away from the MTS Centre and the Flames will be looking to ensure that trend continues tonight.
If it does, and the Flames win, they'll sit atop the Pacific Division by the end of the night.
Here are the expected line combinations for the Flames:
Matthew Tkachuk - Mikael Backlund - Michael Frolik
Johnny Gaudreau - Sam Bennett - Alex Chiasson
Micheal Ferland - Sean Monahan - Troy Brouwer
Lance Bouma - Matt Stajan - Garnet Hathaway
Mark Giordano - Dougie Hamilton
T.J. Brodie - Dennis Wideman
Jyrki Jokipakka - Deryk Engelland
Chad Johnson
And the expected lines for the Jets (via dailyfaceoff.com):
Nikolaj Ehlers - Bryan Little - Patrik Laine
Drew Stafford - Mark Scheifele - Blake Wheeler
Marko Dano - Adam Lowry - Mathieu Perrault
Brandon Tanev - Andrew Copp - Chris Thorburn
Josh Morrissey - Dustin Byfuglien
Tobias Enstrom - Jacob Trouba
Ben Chiarot - Paul Postma
Connor Hellebuyck
A few notes:
1) Despite allowing 15 goals in his first five starts, Johnson is 12-4-1 on the year with a sub 2.00 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. He's been arguably the best goaltender in the league since middle October. Can he stay hot against a high-powered Jets offense?
2) Over the last 10 games, the Flames are controlling ~45% of the scoring chances and ~43% of the high-danger looks. They've been out played on several nights but goaltending and quality goaltending have bailed them out. They need to step up at 5v5 if they want the wins to continue.
3) Monahan enters tonight's contest on a six-game point streak. He is starting to shoot a little more, too, having recorded 2+ shots in four of his last six. If he keeps shooting, the points (and goals) will be there.
Tonight's game is scheduled for 10:00 eastern and can be seen on CBC and Sportsnet.
Recent posts:
Flames top Coyotes, continue climbing standings
Flames stay hot as Johnson leads them by Stars
Predicting the Pacific Division standings
Pacific Division bold predictions
Pacific Division breakout players
Calgary Flames Blogger • 
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