Game Thread: Battle Of Alberta

The Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers find themselves in a strange situation in that both teams are vying for a playoff spot in mid-January. The Flames currently sit at 48 points, good for fourth in the Pacific while the Oilers sit just 3 points ahead in third. The Oilers are coming off a dramatic 3-2 victory in overtime over Taylor Hall and the New Jersey Devils on Thursday, while the Flames are looking to rebound after losing 2-1 to those very same Devils last night.

A win tonight would put five points between the Oilers and the Flames, and could put the Oilers in second place in the Pacific depending on what Anaheim does in Arizona. Can the Oilers take advantage of a Flames club that played last night?

How To Tune In

8 PM Mountain Time on CBC

What To Watch For From The Oilers

Can the Oilers overcome the loss of Adam Larsson? Larsson will miss tonight's game after blocking a shot against the Devils on Thursday night. Eric Gryba will pair up with Brandon Davidson. Gryba was a healthy scratch in Thursday's OT victory against the Devils.

What To Watch For From The Flames

From Matchsticks And Gasoline:

It's almost certain Brian Elliott will get the start in net against the Oilers tonight. Elliott had a rough start to the season as he dropped both games to the Oilers to start and gave up 12 goals on 57 shots in both of those losses. Elliott had turned it around lately, winning 5 straight before dropping one to the Canucks back on January 6th. Elliott is 3-2-0 in his last 5 starts against the Oilers.

Brian Elliot's got a .889 SV% this season, which...isn't very good.

Final Thought

There's still plenty of hockey left in this season, but a regulation win against Calgary in the middle of January while both teams are in the playoff hunt would feel pretty damn good. Besides, nobody really likes the Flames anyway.