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Senators host Flames in matchup of struggling clubs

Jan 14, 2011 - 3:54 PM (Sports Network) - A pair of struggling clubs near the bottom of their respective conference will meet tonight in Ottawa, as the Senators host the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Place.

The Senators is coming off a win, but is still 13th in the Eastern Conference with just 38 points. Calgary, which has lost four in a row, is 14th in the West, but is also three points ahead of Ottawa in the overall NHL standings.

Ottawa ended a six-game slide Thursday against the New York Islanders, notching a 6-4 road victory. Robin Lehner recorded a win in his first NHL start with 20 saves as the Senators scored four times in the second period en route to the victory at Nassau Coliseum.

Milan Michalek, Zack Smith, Jesse Winchester and Chris Kelly each tallied a goal and an assist for the Senators, who had managed just seven goals during their recent six-game slide. Daniel Alfredsson and Nick Foligno also scored for the victors.

"All four lines contributed," said Senators center Corey Locke. "Our defense was solid and Robin played great in the net. It was great to be a part of it."

Ottawa is just 9-12-2 as the host this and has lost three straight on home ice coming into tonight's test.

The Flames may have lost four in a row, but the club has earned a point in each of its last two games despite surrendering a total of 11 goals in those shootout tilts. Calgary was dealt a 5-4 loss by the visiting Detroit Red Wings last Friday and then dropped a 6-5 decision at Carolina on Tuesday.

Calgary battled hard in its most recent loss, as the Hurricanes led the contest 5-2 late in the second period before the Flames tied the game with the final three scores of regulation. However, Jeff Skinner scored the lone goal of the shootout to help the 'Canes claim the two points.

Calgary goaltender Henrik Karlsson enabled the Flames' comeback by stopping 21-of-22 shots in relief of Miikka Kiprusoff, who was pulled in the second period after giving up four goals on just eight shots.

The Flames are making the second stop on a four-game road trip tonight. Calgary has lost seven of its last nine as the guest and is 7-12-4 as the road club on the season.

Calgary and the Sens split two meetings last season, but tonight's game is the only scheduled encounter between the clubs this year. The Flames have taken six of seven overall in the series and Calgary has won two of the last three meetings in Ottawa.