Is Calgary's last stand tonight in Los Angeles?

As NHL.com's Dave Lozo noted in his story about tonight's Calgary-Los Angeles game, this might very well be the night the Flames' remarkable second-half run comes to an end.

Because the Flames will have played three more games than Anaheim and Dallas, each of which they trail by one point in the chase for the West's final playoff spot, a loss will almost certainly leave Calgary with too large a hill to climb, something that seems fairly surprising considering the Flames had jumped up to as high as fifth in the West on their blistering run.

The potential demise of this hot streak is interesting because it could be foreshadowing the very same fate for New Jersey in the East, another team that has turned heads with a remarkable second half -- and garnered most of the press in doing so. But that run by New Jersey, as impressive as it is, may have obscured a more impressive feat in Calgary given a number of circumstances.

This run in Calgary came as the team showed no signs of life and had a number of issues in flux when GM Darryl Sutter stepped down from his post in late December. What made Sutter's change so different from a similar front office move is that not only was Sutter more or less the face of the organization after captain Jarome Iginla, but Sutter was also the brother of head coach Brent Sutter, which immediately put the entire coaching staff's status up in the air.

While New Jersey did have a change at head coach -- one that now seems to have been warranted -- the front office was never in position for a shakeup. GM Lou Lamoriello is likely to have carte blanche with the Devils as long as he wants.

Calgary's uncertainty was on an entirely different level, and when one throws in that Iginla, arguably the best player in the history of the franchise, was rumored to be on the move throughout February as the trade deadline approached, the chance that the Flames could descend quickly into irrelevance this season was looking quite good.

But despite questions in the front office, behind the bench and in the locker room -- not to mention the pressure of hosting the first outdoor game in Canada in more than seven years at the 2011 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic -- the Flames authored a remarkable turnaround from top five pick in the 2011 NHL Draft to top five in the Western Conference playoffs, going 22-6-6 since late December.

Unfortunately for Calgary, however, a recent 1-3-1 skid seems to have put the kibosh on completing what was a tall order from the outset. The chances of a rally for the final spot aren't done yet -- after all, the Flames play four of their last eight games against teams near the bottom of the West standings -- but another loss against a team also competing for a postseason spot could spell the end of the trip.

A defeat tonight in Los Angeles would fit the bill.