The Arizona Coyotes look to get a win streak going tonight against the Calgary Flames.
Game Preview
The Arizona Coyotes continued their point streak last Sunday, beating the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-2 in overtime. The Coyotes have points in their previous nine games, thanks partly to some solid starts and a comeback spirit.
Sunday’s game didn’t require a comeback but featured a strong start. The Coyotes took a 2-0 lead in the first period with goals from Travis Boyd and Nick Schmaltz. Unfortunately, they couldn’t keep up the offense, and their next goal came when Barrett Hayton scored in overtime to give the Coyotes the win.
That has been the trend for the Coyotes the past few games. Get an early lead, then give up goals, sometimes giving up the lead, only to force the game into overtime. Six of their past nine games have gone to overtime, and the Coyotes have won only two.
Craig Morgan reported yesterday that Karel Vejmelka would get the start tonight against the Flames. Vejmelka has had a few good games in the Coyotes’ recent point stretch, but that wasn’t the case in his last game.
Vejmelka gave up five goals on 14 shots and was pulled just 15 minutes and 48 seconds into the game. It was Vejmelka’s worst start of the season, which could mean a bounce-back game tonight.
While the Coyotes get the next three days off after tonight, the Calgary Flames are playing in the first game of a back-to-back tonight. After tonight, the Flames will be heading to Vegas to play the Golden Knights tomorrow.
The Flames had a similar situation late last month. The Flames played the Chicago Blackhawks and Seattle Kraken in a back-to-back, falling 5-1 to the Blackhawks while beating the Kraken 5-2.
The Flames are currently outside a playoff spot and haven’t been playing well enough to get into a playoff spot. They are 4-4-2 in their last ten games and come into tonight’s game, having lost their previous matchup 4-3 to the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday.
Calgary has been a middle-of-the-pack team this season. They are 17th in goals per game and 15th in goals against per game. They have been held to three or fewer goals in five of their last seven games, with the other two being a 5-4 overtime loss to the New York Rangers and a 7-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres.
Players to Watch
Arizona: Clayton Keller – After being held pointless against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Keller has been great these past two games. He had two goals against the Kings and an assist against the Blue Jackets.
Calgary: Mikael Backlund – The 33-year-old Backlund is having a great season. With 38 points in 57 games, he is just one point behind his total through 82 games last season and comes into tonight’s game riding a three-game point streak which saw him record two goals and three assists in three games.
Injuries
Arizona: Bryan Little (ear), Andrew Ladd (knee)
Calgary: Oliver Kylington (personal), Michael Stone (lower body)
Puck Drop
Tonight’s game will be at 7:30 pm Arizona time and will air on Bally Sports Arizona and 98.7 FM.