The Calgary Flames have found themselves in a very interesting position as they currently sit just outside of a playoff spot and are about to embark on a seven game road trip.
Starting tonight in New York against the Rangers, the Flames will not return home until the 11th of March in which we will have a very good indication of how this team sits with respect to their playoff chances.
"We know what's at stake. Everyone does," Giordano said. "The one thing is the excitement level for us because we haven't been in this situation in a few years."
Most would expect the Flames to have a rather strong chance of earning one of the last two spots for the 2015 NHL playoffs, however they will need to continue their strong play and find a way to improve on the road as their current 10 game record sits at 15-11-1 compared to 17-12-3 at home.
In order for Calgary to come out of this road trip in a good position, they will need to win at least 4/7 games and push for 5/6 wins to push away from teams like the Kings and Sharks who they are currently battling neck and neck with at the moment.
The above is actually quite achievable as I would offer that their games against the Devils, Bruins, Flyers, and Sens are winnable. That said, the Flames have actually struggled against Eastern teams with a record of 8-12-2 and if this continues, it could really start to push them in the wrong direction.
In terms of the game tonight, more and more teams are starting to take the Flames very seriously despite their early predictions as a rebuilding team. As teams start to heat up for the playoffs and make changes to their lineups to improve their odds, it will certainly become increasingly difficult for the group to challenge for wins, and they will need to adjust as others around them do.
"They've got a high-skilled team, they've got a lot of defensemen that join the rush, some skilled defensemen back there that really create odd-man rushes and like to get up the ice so we've got to be at our best coming back to the zone and figuring things out," Kevin Klein offered.
Expect to see similar lineups save for Emile Poirier who was recently called up for the Flames. I haven't received confirmation if he will be playing tonight or not, but it looks like Granlund will slot in on the 4th line and Emile will sit. A little odd if you ask me. In terms of tenders, expect Jonas Hiller vs. Cam Talbot between the pipes.
Tonight will certainly be an exciting game for Calgary as they look to get a good start to their road trip!
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