Let’s get it out of the way; Brendan Lemieux will serve the second game of a five game suspension tonight and won’t be in the lineup, but can you imagine if they gave him nothing and Matthew Tkachuk met him on the left side of the ice for a game?

It was criminal that the refs stopped Iggy from fighting Giordano and it is criminal ratings-wise to call off Big Brother Tkachuk Vs Lemieux Jr.

A game of Matthew Tkachuk on the same side of the ice as Brendan Lemieux would have generated highlights that the league could really use. With the league going back to ESPN, it would just make sense to build something from the biting incident last Wednesday when both of Brady Tkachuk’s hands got bit by Lemieux.

Matthew and Brendan already don’t like each other. Fans of the OHL has the privilege of seeing these two go to war multiple times a season. Their last major clash being in 2016 in Pentincton in a rookie game at the Young Stars Classic. Multiple crosschecks were exchanged throughout the game until Tkachuk lost his cool and gooned Lemieux from behind. Check the link for the video.

The Brady Tkachuk - Brendan Lemieux thing takes me back to Penticton in 2016 when seven minutes into the Flames prospects vs. Jets prospects game, Matthew Tkachuk hunted down Lemieux and caught him up high, then cross-checked him repeatedly while he was down. Two families at war. pic.twitter.com/hAHPWcqS2F

— Darren Haynes (@DarrenWHaynes) November 28, 2021

Let alone the Tkachuk/Doughty rivalry that has built over the years.


Let’s just take a minute to address where Drew Doughty is at.

Drew Doughty, winner of two Stanley Cups and a Norris Trophy, sustained an injury after a knee-on-knee collision with Dallas Stars Defenceman Jani Hakanpaa. He was diagnosed to miss eight weeks on October 27. 37 days later he got back in the lineup logging an assist against the Ducks on Wednesday.

The point of bringing it up is important to the game tonight as well as fans of potential 2022 Olympian Drew Doughty.

The clock is ticking for Drew. Despite earning seven points in five games this season and already having won two Olympic Golds, two Stanley Cup Championships, and a Norris Trophy; There are doubts about him making the Olympic team. Most project the Canadian blue line to look like this:


Shea Theodore-Alex Pietrangelo

Thomas Chabot-Cale Makar

Morgan Rielly-Dougie Hamilton

Spares: two of Aaron Ekblad, Adam Pelech, or Darnell Nurse


The last couple seasons have warranted some tough results on the defensive side of the puck for both the Kings and Doughty, but he’s looked good this year. Odds are good that tonight will be a statement game for the 31 year old London native.

It’s just too bad it wasn’t a statement game for Brendan Lemieux and Matthew Tkachuk. One has to wonder what the cost/benefit analysis would look like on the matter off escalating the Tkachuk/Lemieux rivalry tonight vs. Upholding the verdict of the Department of Player Safety.

That said, Tkachuk and and Doughty hate each other. Kings/Flames games are always a blast.



Gaudreau-Lindholm-Tkachuk
Coleman-Backlund-Mangiapane
Dube-Monahan-Pitlick
Lucic-Richardson-Lewis


Hanifin-Andersson
Kylington-Tanev
Zadorov-Gudbranson

Markstrom


The good times
It’s difficult to find criticism of a team that outchances the opposition every night. While the Flames have had the odd weak period of hockey, they haven’t had a game where they were outchanced since the Toronto game — which was at the tail end of a back-to-back.

When the team is losing you can say “the Flames need to tighten up their defensive systems” or “the Flames need to play more disciplined, but they’re just playing so well. The only criticism is that they can stumble when their breakout is disrupted. This happened a few times against Chicago, but they appeared to suture that up against the Penguins. What criticisms can you think of?

Return of the king
Tonight will be Darryl Sutter’s first appearance at the Staples Center since his return to the world of coaching. Expect a warm reception. Given elements of his former team still are playing for the Kings, expect a players such as Kopitar and Doughty to be looking to take advantage of a system they are familiar with.

Potential rental?
Former Vancouver Canuck Alex Edler has been putting up respectable numbers in LA this year. He’s on a one year 3.5 million dollar contract with a full NMC. If he wants to take a run at a cup this year, the Flames would be ideal. Lots of Swedes and a system that could get the most out of the aging defender. His speed isn’t what it used to be, but Calgary has integrated plenty of slower defensemen this year. Plus it would drive Canucks fans nuts.

Anze
At the age of 34, Anze Kopitar still has plenty of gas in the tank. He’s once again being relied on to carry the workload both offensively and defensively. With 23 points in 22 games this year and five points in his last two games: look out for LA’s best player.

Kopitar hasn’t scored a goal since November 11th. Expect that to change with Drew Doughty’s return to the lineup. The Slovenian has two more years on his contract after this season and carries a 10 million dollar cap hit.


Game time is 8:30 MST. Enjoy.



Trevor Neufeld

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