9:00p ET, Scotiabank Saddledome
Calgary, Alberta
TV: Fox Sports Detroit, RSN
Radio: 97.1 The Ticket
Flames Blog: Matchsticks and Gasoline
Well, folks, we’ve lost three in a row. Things aren’t looking great right now, but the good news is that it’s a long season. The Red Wings will look to gain their confidence back against a slumping Calgary Flames who have started the season at 1-5-0. Wednesday’s loss to Edmonton was supposed to be a statement game, but we’re just going to shift that to tonight. Tonight, my friends, needs to be a statement from the Red Wings.
We’ve already heard reports of bench boss Jeff Blashill contemplating some changes with the defensive pairings, so we could very well see a different team tonight. Regardless, the Wings need to improve their power-play. They’re sitting at a paltry 10.5% after failing to score on five chances against the Oilers. Unacceptable. With the players we have, this team should be north of 20% all season long.
The obvious mismatch here is Calgary’s defense. I have no idea why Deryk Engelland is playing in the top-four, while Dougie Hamilton is not. That’s a mystery to me. The Red Wings speed, and offensive skill should thrive against that. The key is K.I.S.S. – Keep It Simple, Stupid. Go back to basics, gain the zone, set it up, and shoot the damn puck. Let’s win this friggin’ game.
The Expected Red Wings Lineup
Forwards
| Justin Abdelkader | Henrik Zetterberg | Dylan Larkin |
| Tomas Tatar | Riley Sheahan | Gustav Nyquist |
| Darren Helm | Brad Richards | Teemu Pulkkinen |
| Drew Miller | Luke Glendening | Landon Ferraro |
Defensemen
| Niklas Kronwall | Jonathan Ericsson |
| Danny DeKeyser | Mike Green |
| Kyle Quincey | Jakub Kindl |
Goaltenders
| Jimmy Howard (starting) |
| Petr Mrazek |
Scratches: Brendan Smith, Joakim Andersson, Tomas Jurco
Injuries: Johan Franzen, Pavel Datsyuk
The Expected Flames Lineup
Forwards
| Johnny Gaudreau | Sean Monahan | Michael Frolik |
| Sam Bennett | Mikael Backlund | Jiri Hudler |
| Michael Ferland | Joe Colborne | Josh Jooris |
| Brandon Bollig | Matt Stajan | David Jones |
Defensemen
| Mark Giordano | Dennis Wideman |
| Kris Russell | Deryk Engelland |
| Ladislav Smid | Dougie Hamilton |
Goaltenders
| Jonas Hiller (starting) |
| Joni Ortio |
Injuries: TJ Brodie, Lance Bouma
Let’s Go Red Wings!!!
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Game Day Prediction Contest
Would you like to predict the outcome of the game and potentially become internet famous? Well you’re in luck, because here’s your opportunity. Here’s how it works.
Make your game predictions on the winning team, final score, and who the Wings player of the game will be. Enter the required information into the form below using the formats indicated in the questions. If you don’t use those formats, your answers will be disregarded. All submissions are timestamped and will be accepted only until the official game start time. All other submissions after that will be disregarded. Only one submission per person, please. POTG will be determined by the collective of WiiM writers.
Each correct winning team prediction is worth 1 point. Each correct player of the game prediction is worth 2 points. Each correct final score prediction is worth 5 points. If you get all three correct you’ll receive 15 points.
