Flames aim to end Red Wings' home winning streak

FLAMES (8-10-1) at RED WINGS (11-7-1)

TV: TSN, FS-Detroit (HD)

Last 10: Calgary 4-6-0; Detroit 6-3-1

Season series: The Flames took the first of four meetings with a 4-1 victory at Detroit on Nov. 3. The defeat extended the Wings' losing streak to six at the time, but they would go on to win four straight after that.

Big Story: The Wings are undefeated in four straight home games at Joe Louis Arena and their last loss in Hockeytown came when the Flames visited town. Calgary has been nearly even with Detroit over the past five seasons with an 8-10-3 head-to-head record.

Team Scope:

Flames: Calgary's season has been marked by inconsistency, as the Flames have alternated wins and losses over their last four games and gone 6-6-0 over their last 12. Wednesday marks the second of a four-game road trip for the Flames after they fell 4-1 on Monday to Columbus, the NHL's worst team.

"This is frustrating for all of us," forward Alex Tanguay said following the game. "It's one step forward, one step back. One good game, one bad game. It falls on us, as players. We all have to be better."

Red Wings: Unlike Wednesday's opponent, Detroit has found its groove recently with wins in six of its last eight games and an average of 4.33 goals-per-game over those six victories.

The Wings got a big game from their penalty-killing unit on Sunday against Anaheim as the Ducks had two power-play opportunities in the last five-plus minutes of regulation, but Detroit held on for the 4-2 win.

"It was a big win, but I think we would have drawn it up a little differently," said defenseman Brad Stuart, who tallied twice Sunday. "We got off to a good start and kind of let them back in it. At the end of the day, we got the two points, and that's all you can ask for."

Who's Hot: While captain Jarome Iginla has struggled recently for the Flames, he has managed 5 goals and 3 assists in his last three games against the Red Wings. … For Detroit, Pavel Datsyuk has 2 goals and 3 assists over a three-game points streak and also has 9 points (3g, 6a) over his last eight games played against Calgary.

Injury Report: Anton Babchuk (hand), Brett Carson (back) and David Moss (foot) are on IR for the Flames, while Brendan Morrison is still day-to-day with a knee injury. … For Detroit, Jan Mursak (ankle) and Ian White (cheekbone) are out.
 
Stat Pack: Detroit has outscored opponents 18-4 during its four-game winning streak at the Joe.

Puck Drop: The Flames have won two games in a row just once this season and the lack of a hot streak is starting to take its toll on their coach.

"We're a team that wins one, loses one because we are having a hard time holding that emotion, that intensity that you need to win hockey games in the National Hockey League as far as a game-to-game basis," Brent Sutter said after Monday's loss. "We got to keep on trying to get it to sink in."

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