Projected Lines: CGY vs TB

Jan 21, 2023 - 7:41 PM

Projected Lines

Calgary Flames versus Colorado Avalanche

Scotiabank Saddledome

Calgary, Alberta

The Flames host the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second game of this homestand and will look to rebound from an abysmal effort against Colorado earlier this week.

Our projections start in the crease, where Jacob Markstrom will sit out this afternoon after a tough showing against the Avs.

Per Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet 960:

Markstrom will warm the bench after two consecutive starts. This will be Vladar’s first start since January 14th at Dallas, where he allowed five goals in a win. He hasn’t lost in regulation time since back in November, carrying a record of 7-0-3 in his last ten contests. Vladar is 8-4-4 on the season alongside a 2.73 GAA and .907 Save Percentage.

In other recent roster news, Dennis Gilbert and Radim Zohorna were sent back down to the AHL as of December 29th, but Zohorna was recalled one day later on December 30th. Other Wranglers making the trip down the hallway are Walker Duehr and Jakob Pelletier who were recalled on January 7th. With Zohorna heading back down the other way as of January 13th, this leaves the active roster at 22 for the time being.

Photo by Kevin Light/Getty Images

Jakob Pelletier skated on the fourth line at practice yesterday and was subbed in for Adam Ruzicka. He took the solo lap at warmups just now, so we’ll expect his NHL debut! Pelletier was the Flames 26th overall selection at the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. He has 24 points in 31 games with the Wranglers, currently surpassing the near-PPG pace he had last year with the Stockton Heat. He clocks in at 5’9” and 160 pounds so his size, like previous callup Matthew Phillips who only saw two NHL games, might limit his usage.

Lineup Looks:

• Brett Ritchie exited the New Year’s Eve game against Vancouver with what appeared to be a wrist injury. He saw a specialist for it on January 3rd and has been placed on retroactive Injured Reserve as of January 8th. The retroactive placement sees him technically eligible to return anytime now, it’s just dependent on the functionality and severity of the injury.
• D-Man Chris Tanev had missed four games since suffering a head injury against Montreal on December 12th. He made his return December 20th and skated on the second pair with Mackenzie Weegar and looks to remain there for the time being.
• Defender Oliver Kylington remains away on personal leave.
• Dennis Gilbert has been up and down like a roller coaster. The defender was sent back down to the Wranglers as of November 27th and recalled on December 18th, and spent a stint on IR before being recalled December 28th, then sent down again the next day.
• After being a highly published healthy scratch for three games this season, Milan Lucic will remain in the lineup and in the top six. Connor Mackey and Adam Ruzicka will be tonight’s healthy scratches.
• Adam Ruzicka has finally been scratched after an earlier hot streak. Over the prior twenty-six games he has two goals and twelve points and has been held off the scoresheet in eleven straight contests.
• Jonathan Huberdeau will stay in the top six but remain on the second line since being swapped with Dillon Dube. Huberdeau is hopefully rounding into form after tacking on twenty-one points in his last twenty-six games. His best performance so far was three assists against the Sharks on December 20th. He also scored the big GWG against the Kraken on December 28th, and recently chipped in two assists against Dallas on January 14th.

Projections:

Barring any major changes when lineups are submitted, they are projected as follows:

FORWARD 1: Dube-Lindholm-Toffoli

FORWARD 2: Lucic-Kadri-Huberdeau

FORWARD 3: Mangiapane-Backlund-Coleman

FORWARD 4: Pelletier-Lewis-Duehr

D1: Hanifin-Andersson

D2: Tanev-Weegar

D3: Zadorov-Stone

GOALTENDERS: Vladar (starter), Markstrom (backup)