TIGHTENING UP

WASHINGTON - It's difficult to explain, to put into words.
In essence, it's just another stretch in an 82-game marathon - you're still awarded two points for a victory, a single point for an extra-time setback, and the games are still three 20-minute periods.
On paper, there might not be anything distinct about the final 30-odd games of the regular season but make no mistake: they're different in every way and the push towards to the postseason will have a different feel.
"Everyone is fighting for it; I think it turns into a league where you're going to see a lot of 3-2 or 2-1 games," Mark Giordano said following the team's fast-paced practice in Arlington. "I know scoring might be up a little bit this year, but as it gets down to playoff time here you're going to see it tighten up for sure.
"You're going to see a lot closer games in my opinion, and those are great games to play in because it prepares you for playoffs. But it's going to really tighten up, there's so many teams still in you're going to see those battles night-in and night-out."

"It's going to be a lot tighter," Mikael Backlund concurred. "There's going to be some really good games moving forward now. This is the best time of the year, we're really excited about it."
Coming out of the All-Star break and the bye week, the Flames are pleased with how their first 51 games of the campaign have gone.
A 33-13-5 record places them first in the Western Conference and second in the NHL. Their +45 goal-differential ranks second in the league, trailing only first-place Tampa Bay.
They capped off the first half of their year with a 8-1-1 record in their last 10 skates and won three straight contests heading into the break.
They're the only team in the league to have five players with 50 or more points and Johnny Gaudreau, fresh off his fifth consecutive All-Star appearance, is tied for third in the NHL's scoring race and with 73 points, he's within striking distance of leader Nikita Kucherov's 79.
But they're far from satisfied.
"We identified things during the All-Star break that we can work on and be more consistent with," coach Bill Peters said. "Nobody is perfect as a team, so there's some things we can tighten up.
"We'd like to be more consistent with our forecheck, a little bit better in the o-zone forecheck. Our d-zone transition has been good and we want to continue being a team that plays fast in our own zone, get out of our own zone through the neutral zone.
"Faceoffs, important execution and then o-zone forecheck and that bleeds into the neutral zone, too. We'd like to forecheck better as a team."
The first test?
A Friday night match-up against the defending Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals. While the Caps struggled prior to the All-Star break, dropping seven straight contests, they're an extremely dangerous club and remain one of the top teams in the Metropolitan Division with a 27-17-6 record.
They cannot be taken lightly.
"They're the defending champs for a reason," Peters stated. "They're elite and they've been elite for a long time. They've got one of the best powerplays in the history of modern game for the last six or seven years, so that'll be a challenge for sure.
"It's all about us trying to impose our will and get to our game quickly. This is our last game to play them in the regular season. Obviously we had one that was long ago in October at some point, so this will be the last time that we see them in the regular season. We're going to focus on the things that we need to do to be successful."