Flames hope to solve home woes against Ducks
The Calgary Flames and Anaheim Ducks will play for the second time in five days when they meet in Calgary on Monday afternoon. The Flames beat the Ducks 6-0 in Anaheim on Thursday for their widest margin of victory this season, and the most one-sided loss for the Ducks. Both teams went in opposite directions in their next games, however. The Flames came home after winning three of four on the trip and lost 8-4 to the visiting Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday. Anaheim bounced back to win the opener of its two-game road trip, 5-1, at the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday afternoon. After scoring at least five goals in regulation three times in October, the Ducks hit that mark just once more before Sunday. "We did a good job finishing," Ducks forward Sam Steel said after scoring in the win against the Canucks. "We've been getting good chances, but the puck just hasn't been going in. Whenever you can put up five, it's a good thing for the team, so we've just got to carry it into (Monday)." The Ducks are playing well on the road overall lately, owning a six-game point streak away from Anaheim (4-0-2). The Flames are struggling at home, posting a 3-8-2 record in their past 13 games at Scotiabank Saddledome. "We've got to make it a harder place to play," Flames head coach Geoff Ward said before the loss to Chicago. "And we've just got to start winning more at home than what we have been lately." Calgary still holds the top wild-card spot from the Western Conference heading into Monday, but is tied in points with the Arizona Coyotes and two others teams are just three points back. "The good thing is, we're in the race," Calgary forward Matthew Tkachuk said. "We had a great road trip that kept us in it. We've got to take care of business at home. We didn't (Saturday), but have to Monday." The Ducks didn't start playing well on the road until the middle of last month, when they won their final two games before their bye week and the All Star break. "I don't know if it's anything in particular, I think we've just been playing good hockey on the road," Steel said. "Desperate for points really. That's what it comes down to. Not all of them are pretty, like (the win in Vancouver), but we've been finding ways." Even with their recent road success, the Ducks are still 11 points back of the Coyotes for the final playoff spot. Anaheim will likely start veteran Ryan Miller in goal after John Gibson made 37 saves against Vancouver. Miller is 10-7-1 in 19 career appearances against the Flames with a 2.60 goals-against average and .919 save percentage. He stopped 14 of 16 shots while playing the final two periods against the Flames on Thursday. He'll be up against Calgary forward Elias Lindholm, who brings an NHL career-high 10-game point streak into the game and has scored five goals in the past three games. He believes he can be even more productive. "I want to shoot a little bit more and have more chances in the slot," Lindholm said. "Right now, I'm getting shots right in front and around the net, but if I could create more chances in the slot, it would be even better." --Field Level Media |