Say What - 'He's Been Our Best Player'

Head Coach Ryan Huska on the return of Jacob Markstrom:

“He's been our best player. Night in and night out, he's given our chance to win. And not just when he's in the lineup, but I think he's made our other goaltenders better as well. When you see someone that's raised their game, it forces the people around them to do the same thing. He's been our best player this year and we're happy to have him back.”

On facing the first-place Canucks tonight:

“They play a style that's a hard game to play against. They have good team speed, they move the puck well and they have a good skill-set. So, as I mentioned, we know that they start games well in this building and we want to make sure that we're matching that early on tonight.”

On if Connor Zary will draw into the lineup as well:

“There's a chance we'll see him tonight. Hopefully everything continues to go well with him and some of our other guys and we do see him back - because he is a good player for us and whether it's 5-on-5 or on the powerplay, he's done a lot of good things for us. And that line, with Kadri and Pospisil over the course of the year, has been a really effective line for us.”

On playing the first game in five days:

“We gave them two days right away from the rink, and then we had two good days of practice. It's not a break that you like to have - for coaches, anyway - but it is what it is and every team goes through sections of their schedule that is like that. So, it becomes priority for us to make sure our start is good tonight and that's what we need to have.”

Connor Zary on potentially returning tonight:

"Feel good now. It's always tough when you're out and miss being around the guys and with the team - and especially when you're skating by yourself and the guys are on the road. It's tough and it can get long mentally. But it's nice to get back and with the group, and here tonight."

On the playoff race:

"It's 14 games, right? We've got to go at every one with a new attitude, one game, one day at a time. That's how we look at things. (We can't look too far) ahead of us or at the standings. We just control what we can control in every game and try to get two points every night. That's our attitude and how we look at things moving forward here."

Blake Coleman on resetting after a break in the schedule:

“It was nice. It was a little bit of a unique break - not something you get every year, but something you want to take advantage of. They scheduled it the right way. We had a couple days off there and spent some time to re-group mentally and physically and two good days of practice. There's no excuses going into the game tonight, we should be rested and ready to go.”

On the mentality of the group at this time of year:

“We've got a lot of new faces and a lot of guys that are pushing to earn jobs and ultimately decide what they're going to be in this league. Every day's a good opportunity for us to see what we've got. We want to win games; we're a competitive group. We had a couple good wins after a down stretch and then a little setback (vs. Washington), so we want to get back on the right footing here. I expect that every game we'll leave it out there.”

On Markstrom returning to the lineup tonight:

“He's important. He's a big-time leader for us, someone we've relied upon since the time that I've been in Calgary on and off the ice. It's great to have him back. He's been through a lot this year and he's still found a way to bring his best and have one of his best seasons, so we expect the same from him tonight and we're happy to have him back in the crease.”

Mikael Backlund on getting off to a quick start tonight:

“Husk talked about it this morning. They're a very good first-period team and it's a big key for us tonight to come out and be the better team in the first and dictate the game right off the hop.”

On his first year as captain and the leadership the Flames have as a whole:

“It's been a rollercoaster for sure this year, with everything going on off the ice. But we're just trying to come in every day and focus on what we can control and that's our game and enjoy being with each other and playing with each other - and whoever's in the dressing room, playing for each other. The guys have done a great job all year sticking with it. We had a slow start, but other than that, I think we've been playing some pretty good hockey despite all the noise that's been around us.”