Straight out of the gate, let me engage you in this rather riveting matchup between the Calgary Flames and the Minnesota Wild. The figures are in, and they sure do paint a picture.
Looking at our gate guardians, Calgary Flames have a strong front with Dustin Wolf who has been a wall this season, boasting 91.9% save percentage with a massive 729 saves. His peer, Dan Vladar, too doesn’t disappoint with a higher save percentage of 93.3% this season. The Wild aren't exactly lacking in that department either. Filip Gustavsson and Marc-Andre Fleury are holding the fort pretty well. Gustavsson has about 816 saves with a season save percentage of 91%. Fleury, although with fewer number of saves, has a decent 90.9% save percentage.
The Flames are powered by some real hotshots. Jonathan Huberdeau, Nazem Kadri, and Blake Coleman are constantly setting the ice on fire. Let me particularly emphasize on Huberdeau's 19 goal streak this season as well as Kadri's last month’s assists - a whopping 7! The Wild, on the other hand, feature Marco Rossi, Mats Zuccarello and Matt Boldy. Rossi has been on fire this season, and Zuccarello and Boldy both have had considerable contribution in goals and assists.
Past confrontations between these two teams have been heated. In the last 5 games between these two, Flames have had a slight edge over the Wild, winning 3 out of those 5 encounters.
In the regular season records, the Wild have shown a superior performance with 28 victories compared to the Flames’ 23. Recent results for both teams has been a mixed bag. Flames managed a well-deserved win against Buffalo, while the Wild were stunned by Utah.
Now, for the fun part. After juggling the numbers, horses and courses, I say, pack your warm clothes as we are about to go wild.
Albert’s Prediction: Minnesota Wild by 2
