Music: {allcanada} Red Wings expect better effort hosting Flames

Friday, March 6, 2015

{allcanada} Red Wings expect better effort hosting Flames

ESPN Fantasy Baseball / Yahoo Fantasy Baseball

DETROIT -- Despite a win in their previous game, the Detroit Red Wings want to put on a much better performance against the Calgary Flames on Friday at Joe Louis Arena.

The Red Wings (36-15-11) beat the New York Rangers 2-1 in overtime on Wednesday but were outplayed. Goalie Jimmy Howard made the win possible with 39 saves.

It was the Red Wings first game at home after a six-game western road trip. So the sluggish performance wasn't a real surprise.

"We better be a lot better than we were," Detroit coach Mike Babcock said. "I expect our energy to be back and us to have a reason to play a lot better than we did [Wednesday]. We got to tighten up our game again and get back to the level we need to be at."

The Flames (35-25-4) beat the Boston Bruins 4-3 on Thursday in an eight-round shootout. They didn't skate Friday morning.

"The way [the Red Wings] play, I think, their style hasn't changed," forward Matt Stajan told the Flames website. "You see teams change their style. It's always the same when you come to this building. They like to control the puck and hold onto it. They rarely give up possession.

"Their top players are their hardest workers. It's kind of like our team. You follow the lead of those guys. This is never an easy game to go into, but it's a great challenge for us and it's a big two points for us."

Stajan returns to the lineup after missing five games because his wife had a baby.

Babcock talked about the challenge Calgary presents.

"Work like dogs, play fast," Babcock said. "Only seen them the one time (a 3-2 win in Calgary on Jan. 7) but they play real hard; it's going to be a playoff game for them. They're trying to get in and we're trying to get in. And we understand where we're at."

Jiri Hudler, a Red Wings draft pick who played his first seven seasons in Detroit, leads the Flames with 52 points and is second with 21 goals.

Here are the projected lineups:

FLAMES

Johnny Gaudreau – Sean Monahan – Jiri Hudler

Lance Bouma - Mikael Backlund - Joe Colborne

Mason Raymond – Drew Shore - Josh Jooris

Brandon Bollig - Matt Stajan - Michael Ferland

Kris Russell – Dennis Wideman

TJ Brodie – Deryk Engelland

David Schlemko - Raphael Diaz

Jonas Hiller

Karri Ramo