KINGS (30-27-5) at FLAMES (33-26-4)
9 p.m. ET; SN1, FS-W, NHL.TV
Kings team scope
Goaltender Ben Bishop could play his first game for the Los Angeles Kings after being acquired in a trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday. Bishop backed up Jonathan Quick in the Kings' 5-4 overtime loss at the Minnesota Wild on Monday. Coach Darryl Sutter didn't discuss a rotation of Bishop and Quick, who has started back-to-back games after missing 59 because of a groin injury. "I'm not getting into that," Sutter said after the loss to the Wild. "It's not baseball. … We got to make sure the guy that has played two in a row is getting his proper rest and taking care of his body." Los Angeles trails the St. Louis Blues by two points for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference. The Kings are five points behind of the Calgary Flames for the first wild card. "[Tuesday] is huge, no matter what," defenseman Jake Muzzin said after the Minnesota game. "Win tonight, still huge. Lose tonight, still huge. One point, two points, it's still huge. It's a must win game for us."
Flames team scope
Calgary is seeking its fifth straight win when it starts a four-game homestand. The Flames, who went 4-0-1 on a five-game road trip, are 15-14-0 at Scotiabank Saddledome. "At this time of year you've just got to find ways to win hockey games," center Matt Stajan said. "We've been doing that on the road. We have to bring that into this building." The Flames are 8-2-1 in February and trail the Anaheim Ducks and Edmonton Oilers by four points for second place in the Pacific Division. "Your mentality has to be to push up when you feel you're within striking distance," captain Mark Giordano said. "At the same time, because we're playing [Los Angeles], it's a four-point game. You can create a little more separation or they come right back into the mix." Goaltender Brian Elliott will start for the sixth time in seven games. Elliott is 4-0-1 with a 2.20 goals against average and .922 save percentage since Feb. 15. "He's been great," Stajan said. "Even when [Chad Johnson] has come in he's been great. Those two guys are pushing each other. It's made a huge difference. Just look at the standings and the way we've picked up points."
Kings projected lineup
Adrian Kempe -- Anze Kopitar -- Dustin Brown
Tanner Pearson -- Jeff Carter -- Tyler Toffoli
Marian Gaborik -- Nic Dowd -- Kyle Clifford
Dwight King -- Nick Shore -- Trevor Lewis
Jake Muzzin -- Kevin Gravel
Brayden McNabb -- Alec Martinez
Ben Bishop
Jonathan Quick
Scratched: Andy Andreoff
Injured: Matt Greene (undisclosed), Jordan Nolan (muscle pull), Paul LaDue (upper body)
Flames projected lineup
Johnny Gaudreau -- Sean Monahan -- Micheal Ferland
Matthew Tkachuk -- Mikael Backlund -- Michael Frolik
Kris Versteeg -- Sam Bennett -- Troy Brouwer
Lance Bouma -- Matt Stajan -- Alex Chiasson
Mark Giordano -- Dougie Hamilton
Matt Bartkowski -- Deryk Engelland
Brian Elliott
Scratched: Freddie Hamilton, Jyrki Jokipakka, Dennis Wideman
Injured:None
Status report
The Kings did not hold a morning skate. … Backlund didn't take part in the morning skate because of maintenance but is expected to play. The Flames placed Jokipakka on waivers on Tuesday.
Who's hot
Pearson has 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in his past eight games. Carter has eight points (three goals, five assists) in the past eight games. … Gaudreau was named the NHL's Third Star of the Week after finishing with eight points (two goals, six assists) in four games. Backlund has six points (four goals, two assists) in HIS past six games. Tkachuk has 10 points (two goals, eight assists) in his past nine games. Monahan is one assist away from 100 and one point from 200 in his NHL career.
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