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Red Wings to face Iginla, Flames

Feb 22, 2008 - 12:54 PM Detroit (42-15-5) at Calgary (31-22-8) 9:00 pm EST

CALGARY, Alberta (Ticker) - The Detroit Red Wings are going to have to figure out a way to stop Jarome Iginla without the services of their captain.

Nicklas Lidstrom will miss his first game with an injured right knee when the Red Wings visit the Calgary Flames on Friday.

Lidstrom, a five-time Norris Trophy winner who has 50 assists this season, suffered the injury in Monday's 4-0 victory over the Colorado Avalanche when Ian Laperriere checked him hard into the boards. He is expected to miss three weeks.

The injured marred what should have been a big victory, as Detroit snapped a six-game slide in which they earned just one point. Offense was the problem during the skid, with the club managing just 10 goals and top scorer Henrik Zetterberg suffering through a season-high five-game goalless drought.

But Zetterberg tallied twice in Monday's victory, and the Wings (89 points) still own a commanding 10-point lead over the Dallas Stars (37-22-5) for the top spot in the Western Conference.

The Flames are involved in a scrum at the bottom of the West playoff picture and need every point they can get between now and the end of the regular season.

Iginla gave Calgary a 3-2 victory over the Dallas Stars on Wednesday when he pushed his 38th goal of the season past Marty Turco with 2:27 left in the third period. The win gave the Flames a 3-2-0 record on their five-game road trip.

Detroit has won the first three meetings between the clubs this season by a combined score of 13-6. The teams have not met since a 5-3 Wings victory on November 27.