Calgary provided measuring stick against hungry Canucks – Sportsnet.ca

Calgary's final game of the season presents an exciting opportunity.

The Flames come to Vancouver on Tuesday night to host a team that has a lot on the line. The Canucks are playing their final home game before the playoffs and are one point away from clinching the Pacific Division.

Ignoring the 28-point difference between the two teams, Calgary will be in trouble. That's not a bad thing, knowing that the Flames have been eyeing the future for the past few weeks. In fact, it serves as an excellent learning and assessment tool.

“You're playing against the best team in our division right now, it still has something and we know what kind of game we're going to get from them,” head coach Ryan Huska said Monday after Calgary's final full practice. June.

“It gives us a chance to see young players against some of the top players.”

The Canucks are one of the deepest frontcourt teams in the Western Conference. They are hungry. They are working hard for the most important time of the year. They are as close to a measuring stick as a team in Calgary's position can get.

“We're playing high-level competition here and a team that's still getting beat, so they're going to be fired up and ready to go,” assistant coach Kyle McLean said on Sunday's Flames Talk postgame show.

“The thing about Vancouver is a good judgment of who can handle the speed. There is speed and skill here. You've got defensemen and forwards who have a chance to show they can handle this pace at this time of year with a team scrambling to find the right position in the playoffs.”

I'm not sure that wisdom applies to anyone more than rookie forward Connor Zary.

The Flames traded Zari to center earlier this month to evaluate his first year at the NHL's toughest forward position. Returns have been strong so far, which is encouraging going into next season.

But Zari wasn't in as much trouble as you'll see on Tuesday night.

“We want to see him continue to make strides at this position,” Huska said.

“I think he's done a really good job so far. The LA game (4-1 loss last week) was a tough game because they have depth … and Vancouver is very similar in that regard. All the matches they choose will be difficult for our centers. It's a great opportunity to see if he can step up against a really good team.”

With Elias Lindholm back in the lineup, Vancouver is fully loaded in the middle. Lindholm and his impressive performance with Conor Garland and Dakota Joshua on Saturday will face Edmonton's Leon Draisaitl, who will likely see Nazem Kadri and Calgary's main offensive trio for much of Tuesday's matchup.

The latest change at his disposal gives head coach Rick Tochet the option of using either JT Miller or Elias Petterson against Zari. This is a huge opportunity for the 2020 first-round pick because it's a tough challenge.

And, to be honest, there is no downside. It is an encouraging sign if Zari can perform well and hold his own. And if he runs, that's another lesson that goes into the game center at the highest level.

This time of year is for Flames.

The timer is on.

Nazem Kadri is one goal short of his third 30-goal season. Blake Coleman, who will miss his fourth game Tuesday with an upper-body injury, is one game away from reaching 30 for the first time in his career.

Then there's Mackenzie Vigar, who sits at 19 with two games left. Vigar is on pace to become the first NHL defenseman to score 20 goals and 200 blocked shots that season, the latter accomplished.

Individual milestones like these really lead the Flames in the final week of the regular season.

“They are important,” Huska acknowledged Monday.

“At the end of the day, you always want it to be about team play. But at the same time, it's important for a defender to score 30 goals or score 20 goals.

“Teammates know it too. There are times when you will do whatever you can to help those guys score if they can. As much as it's about the team, those milestones are important because … it reinforces the kind of season that certain people have had for us.”

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– The Flames hope to get another shot at Coleman's quest for 30. Coleman returned to the ice for practice Monday morning, and Huska said the team had “fingers crossed” he could return Thursday against San Jose in Calgary's season finale. .

– Calgary recalled American League shortstop Adam Klapka on Monday morning, and the winger looks set to suit up for the team's final two games. At 6-foot-8 and 235 pounds, the Flames hope to see Klakpa use his imposing frame more effectively than he did in his first NHL recall in January. Klapka led the Calgary Wranglers with 24 goals and 45 points in 64 games this season.

– Also on Monday, the Flames signed Finnish goaltender Valtteri Ignatev to a one-year, $870,000 entry-level deal. Calgary goaltending director Jordan Sigalet has zeroed in on Ignatius since the start of his season with Swedish second division team Mora IK, which ended over the weekend. The plan is for Ignatius, 24, to compete for playing time in North America in the AHL next year.