Led by a booming Matt Coronato, the Calgary Flames will look to win at least three games for the first time since before Thanksgiving when they visit the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday.
Coronato had a goal and an assist in a 2-1 home win over the Los Angeles Kings after assisting on Jonathan Huberdeau’s overtime winner in Anaheim on Tuesday. Huberdeau also hit the game-winner against the Kings, but Flames coach Ryan Huska highlighted Coronato’s effort and impact.
“There are nights we talk about when Matty wasn’t very good,” Huska said, “but it doesn’t happen very often. … “He’s been a great player for us and he continues to elevate his game.”
Huska and Co. they could say the same about goaltender Dustin Wolf, who stopped 31 of 32 shots for the Kings.
Wolf may be rested after starting the last three games, though the Flames may decide otherwise. Wolf is 2-0-0 against the Blackhawks this season with a 2.51 goals against average and a .917 save percentage.
Chicago will look to bounce back from last Saturday’s loss against the Flames’ counterpart from Alberta, Canada, the Edmonton Oilers.
After racing to a 3-1 lead midway through the second half against the Oilers, the host Blackhawks gave up three unanswered goals to last season’s Stanley Cup runner-up.
With the fewest points in the NHL (30), and a focus on gradually developing a young core, the Blackhawks heeded interim coach Anders Sorensen’s call to approach the season in five-game segments.
Defenseman Alec Martinez, who played Saturday after missing the previous 15 games with a neck injury, knows the current half can still end well.
“You have to take action as a team,” said Martinez. “Things like tonight, we had a really good start, we went 2-0 up, and this team has to take steps and we have to learn that you have to put together the full 60 minutes and that’s about details. and Missing practices in our game or anything consistent in our game.
“Obviously if you don’t do that you allow teams to come back, and if you play with bad habits, you give up a lot of chances. It puts pressure on us. You end up playing a lot of D-zone. It’s a snowball effect and you get the result we got tonight.
Blackhawks leading scorer Connor Bedard (38 points) will look to rally the team after a nine-game skid.
Bedard had a goal and two assists in Chicago’s 6-4 loss at Calgary on Dec. 21 but was kept off the scoresheet in a 3-1 road loss on Oct. 15.
Coronato has collected three goals and an assist against the Blackhawks in those games.
Calgary is guaranteed to win the season series after Chicago won two of three meetings last season.
Monday marks the start of Calgary’s four-game road trip and a stretch that will see the Flames play six of seven away from home.
–Field Level Media