It’s no secret the Calgary Flames struggled heading into the 4-Nations Face-off break. The team lost three straight games before the start of the international competition kicked off. They were 2-5-1 down the stretch and 4-5-1 during their last 10 games.
You could point out the obvious fatigue with the Flames playing those 10 contests in just 17 evenings. You could also mention they were without a couple of key pieces in Connor Zary and Kevin Bahl, who missed 15 and eight games respectively.
Refreshed after vacations and at least one proposal, the Flames players also welcomed back both Zary and Bahl on Tuesday during their first practice in more than 10 days.
With a full complement of players expected to be available when they play their first game after Thursday’s crowning of the 4-Nations Face-off champion, the Flames will have no excuses available if they fall further behind the Vancouver Canucks for the last wildcard spot. Just three points separate the Flames from the Canucks. Each has 27 games remaining.
The path should prove challenging for the Flames though. If they make it, they’ll have earned it.
The first game back on Sunday is a warmup against the San Jose Sharks. The next six are road games against the Washington Capitals, Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes, Philadelphia Flyers and Dallas Stars. Yikes.
The Capitals are the best in the Eastern Conference so far this season. The Panthers are defending Stanley Cup champions and both the Hurricanes and Stars have eyes on joining that list. Things have not gone well historically against the Lightning, either, and their meeting at the Saddledome earlier this season was as lopsided as NHL games get.
That stretch leads the Flames right into the trade deadline, where they’ll have decisions to make with a number of pending unrestricted free agents. Those will be heavily influenced by how GM Craig Conroy’s team performs during this critical road swing.
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