The Calgary Flames are just outside of a playoff position, but know they are in control of their destiny as they prepare to host the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night.
The Flames (33-25-11, 77 points) sit four points behind the St. Louis Blues for the second wild-card position in the Western Conference, but hold three games in hand.
They return home after winning the final three games of a four-game road swing.
“I’m really pleased with the way the guys played on the road trip,” coach Ryan Huska said. “Now, it’s going home and making sure we’re going to keep the momentum going.”
After opening their trip with a one-sided loss in Toronto, the Flames swept the trio of New York-area squads, including the New Jersey Devils, thanks to comeback victories in each contest.
“This group has so much heart, so much compete, and we need to bring our best every night from here on out,” said forward Matt Coronato, who is riding a three-game goal-scoring streak in which he has tallied four times. “I think our energy level (will) be high. We’re excited for these last games.”
Calgary has 13 contests remaining in the regular season.
The Flames also appear to be gaining reinforcements at a critical moment. After missing the last game, defenseman MacKenzie Weegar (lower-body injury) and forward Joel Farabee (illness) are expected to return. Captain Mikael Backlund, who has missed the past five games due to an upper-body issue, also practiced fully on Monday.
“We have to see how he reacts after practice,” Huska said. “We’ll kind (of) go from there.”
The Kraken (30-36-5, 65 points) have not been officially eliminated from Stanley Cup playoff contention, but it is only a matter of time as they sit 16 points out with 11 games remaining.
Seattle arrives having lost two straight games, the latest a 5-4 defeat to the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday.
“I think everyone in this room knows we’ve got to be better and play harder,” forward Kaapo Kaako said after scoring twice in Edmonton. “There were good times out there (in Edmonton) when we played pretty good. We got good chances and it was a pretty tight game in the end.
“We’ve just got to find a way in these games.”
As disappointing as the season has been, the Kraken have seen some positives. Possibly the biggest being that their two future cornerstone players in Matty Beniers and Shane Wright have taken steps forward.
Beniers, the 2021 second overall pick who won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie thanks to a 24-goal campaign in 2022-23, has shown a more rounded game as he hunts for the 20-goal mark.
Wright, the fourth pick in 2022, is tied with Beniers at 17 goals and has become an everyday NHLer after experiencing some growing pains.
“Wrighter has obviously taken a step ever since, really, December,” veteran forward Jordan Eberle said in an interview with the team’s website. “He makes a lot of little plays. His speed is very underrated. His shot is underrated. He’s got a lot of tools that make him an offensive threat. I see the confidence coming into his play.
“I think it’s the same confidence for Matty too. He keeps growing as a player. He’s engaged. I’ve always said the things that impressed me with him were his defensive play and the way he controls the puck (in all situations). Both are very cerebral players with hockey IQs off the charts.”
