In what could be Miikka Kiprusoff’s last appearance at the Scotiabank Saddledome, he’s looking for a performance that Flames die-hards will remember for lifetimes. All because his wife recently gave birth to a boy, Kiprusoff imposed a no-trade clause on himself and announced he would retire at the conclusion of this season. And with the stats he put up this year, he’s been overdue for a retirement.
Nonetheless, the Calgary Flames will host the Detroit Red Wings tonight at 7:30 PM MT. This is the third and final meeting of the season between the two clubs and somehow Calgary has won the first two out-scoring the ‘Wings 9-3.
The Flames are tied for third-last in the league and have 36 points. The Avalanche are closing in on the Flames and currently have just one fewer point than Calgary does. Detroit, on the other hand, sits in 8th place with 47 points but a loss tonight and a Columbus win would put the Red Wings in 9th place.
“We control our own destiny,” Red Wings goalie, Jimmy Howard said. “It’s upon us and the dressing room to get the job done. I think a lot of people would be happy to see us miss the playoffs. We have to go out there and play with the same sense of urgency when we get out to Calgary.”
When the final buzzer blows, and a video presentation is shown on the video board, people will cheer, people will applaud as it’s another piece of the puzzle gone from the 2004 Stanley Cup team. It’s the end of an era in Flames hockey.