The Calgary Flames have been eliminated from playoff contention, but that reality hasn’t stopped them from making a difference in the postseason race.
The Flames (33-38-9, 75 points) beat Utah 4-1 on Sunday and will try to defeat another playoff-bound team when they host the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night.
In between, Calgary will host the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday night in a game that will have no impact on the playoff race.
Colorado (53-16-11, 117 points) clinched the top overall seed with a win over Calgary on Thursday and will play its last two games of the regular season with nothing at stake but health. The Avalanche are coming off a 2-1 victory in a shootout at Edmonton on Monday night.
The Flames are trying to gain momentum heading into the offseason and gain experience for young players. The latest to make his NHL debut was defenseman Abram Wiebe at Seattle on Saturday.
Wiebe signed with Calgary right after his North Dakota State team was eliminated by Wisconsin in the Frozen Four on Thursday.
The 22-year-old Wiebe played 11:19 in a loss to the Kraken and another 7:44 a night later against the Mammoth.
“It’s been pretty crazy, going down to Vegas for the Frozen Four, getting upset by Wisconsin (Thursday), and then having to flip the page to sign my first contract and play my first NHL game,” Wiebe told Sportsnet 960 The Fan following a 4-1 loss to Seattle.
Even with the disappointing season, three Flames have a chance to play in all 82 games — Mikael Backlund, Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee. The trio has a long way to go to match the steadiness of Colorado defenseman Brent Burns.
Burns played in his 1,005th straight game Monday night, an ironman streak second only to Phil Kessel, who played in 1,064 consecutive games from 2009-23. Burns is unlikely to sit the last two games of the season, but the Avalanche have rested players with the top overall seed clinched.
Artturi Lehkonen, who missed three weeks in March to an injury, didn’t play Monday night. Cale Makar (upper body), Josh Manson (upper body) and Nazem Kadri (finger) were out of the lineup.
Avalanche coach Jared Bednar did not accompany the team on the road trip after suffering facial fractures and a corneal abrasion when he was hit by a puck during Saturday’s loss to Vegas.
While Colorado’s postseason seeding is set, milestones are still available. Martin Necas is one point from reaching 100 for the first time in his career, and Nathan MacKinnon has a chance to win the Rocket Richard Trophy as the NHL’s top goal scorer.
MacKinnon has a career-high 52, one more than Montreal’s Cole Caufield, and can become the first Avalanche player to finish with the most goals since Milan Hejduk in 2002-03.
Colorado is two points behind the franchise record of 119 set in 2021-22.
“Preparation for the playoffs,” said goaltender Scott Wedgewood, who had 30 saves against Edmonton on Monday. “Proud of our guys to be able to step up. Not that there’s not anything to play for, there are details and tendencies, but you can get a little lazy with how the standings are.”
