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Expected to be another tough game for the home team, the young Calgary Flames will be challenged with the Anaheim Ducks tonight as they look to secure another win since giving up two recent losses.
That being said, the Ducks themselves have had difficulties stringing together wins of late, having recently dropped a game to the Toronto Maple Leafs last night, and only holding four regulation wins in their last ten games played.
Still atop the standings in the Western Conference, however, the Ducks will be a tough challenge for the youthful roster of the Calgary Flames who continue to miss a few key players such as Dennis Wideman, Karri Ramo, Jiri Hudler, and Matt Stajan.
If you caught a certain name missing on that list, it’s because the Flames have finally received confirmation that forward Curtis Glencross has been cleared to rejoin the team. Glencross has missed 29 games with a high ankle sprain and will be a big addition to the youthful team carrying forward. In addition, Kevin Westgarth who was injured after a fight a few games ago will also return to the lineup tonight.
Their additions into the lineup means that Ben Hanowski and Markus Granlund will be sent back down to the Abbotsford Heat of the AHL. The two prospects did not get a whole ton of ice time with the Flames during their recent call-ups, however the time spent with the team will certainly help toward their long-term development as professional players.
With respect to tonight’s game, and although I mentioned that the Ducks will be a tough team to play, they have been struggling of late and the Flames could take advantage of this. Anaheim has dropped a few of their recent games due to an inability to find the back of the net, and it has taken them away from their usual game plan, it seems.
"We're in a funk," said coach Bruce Boudreau. "And we've just got to get out of it before too long, and do what we do. We've just got to get back on our horse."
With the above in mind, it stands to reason that the Ducks will look to bounce back off a big win against a team like Calgary. However, what they likely are not taking into consideration, as has been the case with many teams this year, is that the Flames haven’t been an easy team to beat. In fact, they have extended their “one goal games… streak to 6 of their last ten games.
"The way we played the last 7-8 minutes of the game, if we had played the whole game like that, the outcome might have been different," said McGrattan. "We hung around the whole game. We came on at the end."
McGrattan has been one particular player who has helped this team succeed in their last two games, as the enforcer registered two goals. With the addition of two more gritty type players in Westgarth and Glencross tonight, the Ducks might have quite the challenge themselves. The Flames may not be stocked with talent this year, but they have certainly proven to be a tough team to play against…that’s for sure.
Joni Ortio is expected to get the start again tonight, and the team in addition to their head coach has certainly been singing him praise. The young, inexperienced goalie has been doing quite well for the team so far, having only played five games but holding a GAA of 2.24 and a SV% of .907, which is respectful.
“I like Joni,… coach Bob Hartley said. “He’s very calm. He’s under control. His technique is very, very good. We look at the goals he’s given up — he’s been beaten by tips or deflections. He didn’t get beat by bad rebounds or stuff like this. I think he’s been pretty solid. We’re very happy with him.…
With the line changes tonight, it appears that Lance Bouma will be given an opportunity to play on the first line with Mikael Backlund and Mike Cammalleri, while Colborne will be moved back down to the 3rd line. Below are your expected line combinations.
Updated* Byron - Backlund - Bouma Cammalleri - Monahan - Colborne Glencross - Galiardi - McGrattan Reinhart - Knight - Westgarth
Giordano - Brodie Russell - Butler Smid - Wotherspoon
Ortio
That’s all for today folks, thanks for reading!