The essentials
Who: Calgary Flames (16-12-2) at Minnesota Wild (15-11-3)
Puck drop: 7:08 p.m. CT
The opponent
Winners of two consecutive games, the Calgary Flames come to St. Paul following two days off since their last game, a 4-2 win against the Vancouver Canucks. The game marks the only contest away from the Scotiabank Saddledome before the Flames return home for two more games.
Minnesota won the only previous meeting between the teams this season, a 4-2 victory in Calgary on Oct. 21. Chris Stewart, Ryan Suter, Jared Spurgeon and Daniel Winnik scored goals for the Wild, Suter also had two assists, and goaltender Alex Stalock made 35 saves.
Calgary's line featuring Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan has been lethal this season; Gaudreau leads the club with 37 points, while Monahan has a team-best 17 goals.
Goaltender Mike Smith has carried the load this season, starting 26 games and going 13-9-2 with a 2.68 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage.
Home-ice advantage
Minnesota has points in six straight games at Xcel Energy Center, registering a 5-0-1 record since Nov. 14 -- its longest point streak on home ice since going 8-0-0 Nov. 23-Dec. 29, 2016. Minnesota has posted five power-play goals on 17 opportunities (29.4 percent) in those games while going 17-for-18 (94.4 percent) on the penalty kill.
Overall, Minnesota has points in 11 of its past 15 games, posting a 10-4-1 record since Nov. 9.
Last edited: