Russell, Jones return for Flames

Monday, 01.20.2014 / 5:28 PM

By Eric Gilmore - NHL.com Correspondent / 2013-2014 At the Rink Blog

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SAN JOSE -- The Calgary Flames will have defenseman Kris Russell and forward David Jones back in the lineup Monday night against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center.

Russell has missed 13 games with a knee injury while Jones was out for eight with an eye injury.

"Anytime you get hurt it's brutal," Jones said after the Flames' morning skate. "I think this one just lagged on. I think we were a little too optimistic about how quickly it was going to turn around. That's the most frustrating part about it. I was thinking I'd be able to play the next day. My vision just wasn't getting any better. It was a little scary there for a while. I was worried that it was going to be worse than it was. Fortunately now it's 100 percent. It's nice to be back."

To make room for Russell on the active roster, the Flames placed forward Mike Cammalleri on injured reserve. He has missed the past four games with a concussion.

"I heard today he was in for treatment," Flames coach Bob Hartley said. "You know concussions, how they work. There's nothing that we can give, a set time. Tomorrow we're going to be back in Calgary and we'll have a better idea with Cam, but I heard that he's doing much better."

In another development, CBC's Elliotte Friedman reported Monday that the Flames are on the verge of signing center Matt Stajan to a contract extension.

"We're in discussions," Stajan told the Calgary Sun. "I haven't signed anything yet, but I'd love to be back here and we're working towards it. I want to be a part of what's going on here. We have a lot of promise with what's going on with the young guys, and I just want to see this through."

Hartley called Stajan "a great leader" on his team.

"I have lots of faith, lots of trust in [Stajan] on the ice. He's a true pro off the ice. He takes care of himself, takes care of everyone," Hartley said. "I think that he's found a niche with us. He feels good, he feels comfortable. We [feel] the same. I've heard about negotiations. I don't know where they're at."

Based on the morning skate, Sharks coach Todd McLellan will not insert forward Mike Brown into the lineup. Brown has 62 penalty minutes in just 35 games.

Forward Martin Havlat and defenseman Scott Hannan are available to play, McLellan said, but they were two of the last Sharks off the ice and will likely be healthy scratches. Havlat has missed 13 straight games since suffering a lower-body injury. Hannan has missed three straight games with an upper-body injury.

Here are the projected lineups for Calgary and San Jose:

FLAMES

Jiri Hudler - Mikael Backlund - Lee Stempniak

Paul Byron - Sean Monahan - Joe Colborne

Lance Bouma - Matt Stajan - David Jones

Kevin Westgarth - Blair Jones - Brian McGrattan

Mark Giordano - TJ Brodie

Kris Russell - Chris Butler

Ladislav Smid - Dennis Wideman

Karri Ramo

Reto Berra

Scratched: Ben Street, TJ Galiardi, Shane O'Brien