OFF TO THE RACES

One hundred and fifty-one days, twelve hours and thirty-one minutes later.
They're back.
And and more importantly, they're ready.
With a chip on their shoulder and a blank slate to work with, the Flames are on a mission to make things right.
"With a new coaching staff, it sort of wipes everything clean," captain Mark Giordano said following Wednesday's voluntary veteran fitness testing session.
With the start of the O.R.G. NHL China Games about a week away, the players got to work a little earlier than usual, as they gathered at WinSport and held their annual medical and fitness testing ahead of Tuesday's long-haul flight.
"We're all starting fresh.
"We all want to make a good impression with the coaches, first off, and then we want to find chemistry with the [new] players. We have a lot of new faces and I think we're an extremely deep team this year.
"There's a lot of optimism around our team and rightfully so."

The Flames enter the 2018-19 season with an army of new additions, including head coach Bill Peters, forwards Elias Lindholm and James Neal, and defenceman Noah Hanifin.
But those that played through a difficult past campaign know they can't just count on the newcomers to save the day and solve all that ails them. They're out to prove that last year was an aberration and that they're capable of more.
After all, the expectations have never been higher for this group of Flames.
And they know it.
"Last year," a talkative Matthew Tkachuk said, "you think more about how you can take another step forward [as a team]. We didn't do that, so for me, it's all focused on how I can help get our team back to the playoffs, ultimately go far and accomplish something special with this group.
"I hope everybody has that same mentality."
Tkachuk, who suffered a season-ending injury on Mar. 11 but arrived in camp with a clean bill of health, is positive the team has all the right tools - and the right mindset - to bounce back and return to the dance.
"It's not like we're just bringing in some guys that may or may not play. We're bringing in two Top 9 forwards, one Top 4 D and a full new coaching staff," he said.
"What excites me is the new vibe and energy.
"I want (Bill Peters) to expect great things from us and anything less than that would be a disappointment. I think we have a great group in there … that can do great things.
"But in order to do that, we have to have high expectations for ourselves."
The 6-foot-2, 202-pound winger had a career high 24 goals and 49 points last year, despite missing the final 14 games.
A healthy Tkachuk with 60-plus point potential, a perennial 20- to-30-goal man in Neal, the right-handed Lindholm and others elevating their game, will go a long way to solidifying the Flames' offence up the right side, as well as establishing a winning culture at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
"He's going to be a big leader in our team because he's been there and he's done it," Giordano said of Neal. "He's obviously a gritty guy who scores a lot of goals - and I love the way he plays - but he's going to be a big help on the leadership side of things, too."
Mikael Backlund, meanwhile, is already bringing a championship mentality to the Flames' dressing room, and it's only Day 1.
The 29-year-old wore the 'C' for Team Sweden and led the national team to a gold medal at the IIHF World Hockey Championship in May.
"Just an unbelievable feeling to raise the cup," Backlund said. "It definitely was a great experience for me and gave me a taste for winning and made me want to win even more. I always dream of winning the Stanley Cup, but to get a taste of winning, it makes you want to win even more.
"We knew something was going to happen [after last year] and they were going to shake up the team.
"I'm excited now.
"I'm excited to see the new players and I'm excited for the new year."