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NHL Pick – The Battle for Eighth in the West

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NHL Pick – The Battle for Eighth in the West

The Detroit Red Wings visit the Calgary Flames in what is the unlikliest of battles for the final playoff position in the Western Conference. The Wings are currently one point up on the Flames but Calgary has one game in hand.

Detroit Red Wings (33-23-12) @ Calgary Flames ()

9:30 PM ET, Monday, March 15, 2010

Pengrowth Saddledome, Calgary, Alberta

On: XM Satellite Radio Channel 206 and TSN Television

  • The Calgary Flames rank 26th on offense, and average 2.5 goals per game. The Flames are 16.7% on the power play and have 37 power play goals.
  • The Detroit Red Wings rank 17th on offense, and average 2.7 goals per game. The Red Wings are 19.5% on the power play and have 51 power play goals.
  • The Flames average 2.4 goals per game at home, and give up 2.4 goals against on defense.
  • The Red Wings average 2.6 goals per game on the road, and give up 2.9 goals against on defense.

Detroit Red Wings: -115

The Detroit Red Wings are finally starting to look like the team that everyone in Hockeytown and around the NHL expected they would be. Finally healthy, the Wings have made a move in the Western Conference standings with a 5-2 record since the Olympic break. Unfortunately, one of their losses during that span was to the team directly behind them in the standings, and Monday foe, the Calgary Flames.

The Detroit Red Wings return to prominence has coincided with the team being able to finally ice a full team. They have been minus one or two pieces all season and their so-so record has been a reflection of that. Pavel Datsuyk, Tomas Holmstrom Nick Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski have been great in the last week for the Wings which is definitely a good sign going forward.

The Red Wings have some work to do if they want to avoid San Jose or Chicago in the first round of the playoffs. A game against a hot Calgary team

Calgary Flames: -105

The Calgary Flames are one of the hottest teams in the NHL and their good play couldn’t have come at a better time. They had won four straight games before their Sunday loss to the Vancouver Canucks in a game that they totally dominated after the first period. In fact, they outshot the Canucks 11-0 in the third period of that game. The Flames seem to have gelled with the six newcomers to their lineup and are playing as good as at any point this season.

After last Sunday’s hat trick, Jarome Iginla has struggled with only one goal and one assist in his last three games. The team has been getting it done despite his struggles. They are only two games above .500 at home and know they need to get it going at home or their playoff hopes will be gone. Motivation should not be a problem for the ninth place Flames – they have some ground to make up and their Monday foe is directly ahead of them in the standings.