5 Things - Flames vs. Islanders

1. Back In The Saddle

After a week and a half away from home, the Flames' upcoming five-game homestand sounds as appealing as that third bowl of porridge.

Just right.

The set of home fixtures gets underway with a matinee, too, as the Islanders come to town for the Flames' Next Gen Game. GET TICKETS

For Calgary, the goal is to build on the momentum gained by a solid road trip finale in Chicago Thursday night. For 60 minutes, the Flames worked, they checked, and got timely first-period goals in a 3-1 victory over the Blackhawks.

And over the past 120 minutes, the team is 4-7 on the powerplay, three of those markers coming off second-chance opportunities in the environs of the opposing crease.

That type of work ethic, that drive to get to the tough areas, is something Head Coach Ryan Huska is hoping to be able to count on as the scene shifts to the Scotiabank Saddledome.

"You have to find a way to be consistent with your effort," Huska said in Chicago after his side claimed two points against the Blackhawks. "I like the way our group plays at home for the most part, we do a good job on the checking side of the game.

"The challenge for us, to build off of tonight - and the powerplay success that we’ve had here over the last little while, goal-scoring wise - (is) to find a way to execute a little bit quicker, so we can be a little more efficient with the puck."

Matt Coronato grew up watching Saturday's opponent - the New York Islanders - and he comes into the contest tied for Calgary's team lead in goals after his empty-netter helped seal Thursday's win.

Fresh off seeing his old billet family from the USHL's Chicago Steel, the Long Islander is keen on getting back to the Stampede City, with eight of Calgary's final nine games before the Olympic break set to take place in front of the C of Red.

"I think we’re definitely excited to get back in front of the fans," he said Thursday evening. "It’ll be nice to be home for a bit.

"Hopefully we can start the homestand on a good note."

2. Know Your Enemy

This afternoon's game marks stop No. 5 on a massive, seven-game Western swing for the Islanders and so far, they've posted a 2-1-1 record over four previous fixtures.

Two nights ago in Edmonton, Anthony Duclair provided the game's only offence, while Ilya Sorokin stopped all 35 shots he faced to earn his league-leading fifth shutout of the season as New York blanked the Oilers 1-0.

"We defended really well. Yes, they had some good looks and when they had those, Ilya was outstanding, he made some great saves for us and our power play came through with a big one for us,” Islanders head coach Patrick Roy told reporters following the game. “That’s a big win for us."

Sorokin - and the Islanders' team defence - are big reasons for the club's move up the standings. New York sits second in the Metropolitan Division, and their 130 goals against stands as the third-lowest total in the NHL.

And those good fortunes extend all the way back to last spring, when the Islanders won the NHL Draft Lottery, cashing in on phenom defenceman Matthew Schaefer with the first-overall pick. The 18-year-old is averaging 24 minutes of ice-time per game, and he's got 13 goals and 30 points to his name over his first 47 NHL appearances, good for third among rookie points leaders this season.

3. Fast Facts

2025-26 Season Series

This afternoon marks the first of two meetings between the Flames and Islanders this season, with the return engagement set for Mar. 14 on Long Island.

Calgary swept the season series in 2024-25, winning 2-1 in a shootout on home ice Nov. 19 before scoring a 4-3 overtime victory at UBS Arena last Mar. 22. Justin Kirkland's shootout winner stood up as the decider in the home fixture, while Long Island's own Matt Coronato had a pair of goals in the road contest, won on a Nazem Kadri marker 3:53 into extra time.

Did You Know?

Flames defenceman MacKenzie Weegar and Islanders forward Jonathan Drouin were teammates on the Halifax Mooseheads squad that captured the 2013 Memorial Cup in Saskatoon.

Drouin led the QMJHL side that season with 105 points (he was named the league's regular season and playoff MVP), while Weegar's 44 points were second-most among Halifax defencemen.

Former Flames Micheal Ferland (Saskatoon), Tyler Wotherspoon (Portland) and Nikita Zadorov (London) also took part in that Memorial Cup, while current Calgary Wranglers forward Martin Frk was a teammate of Weegar and Drouin's on that championship Mooseheads squad.

4. Hey, Shorty!

Mikael Backlund's short-handed marker Thursday in Chicago was Calgary's seventh of the season, putting the Flames into a tie for the league lead in that category with the Los Angeles Kings.

That total also matches the Flames' total short-handed output from the 2024-25 campaign.

Backlund became the third Calgary skater to record a short-handed goal in this campaign, joining Blake Coleman and Joel Farabee, who have three each.

And by scoring his 19th career short-handed goal, Backlund tied former Islanders forward Anders Kallur for the third-most among Swedish players in NHL history - a figure bettered only by Mats Sundin and Daniel Alfredsson.

Coleman, by the way, was the last Flame to score more than three shorties in a single season; he had four - all of which came in a 16-day span in December - during the 2023-24 campaign.

5. Players To Watch

Flames - Mikael Backlund

Backlund comes into Saturday's game with multi-point efforts in back-to-back contests, crossing the 30-point mark for the 11th straight season in the process.

In Chicago, the captain changed the complexion of the game after Calgary fell behind by a goal early. He helped set up Yegor Sharangovich's powerplay equalizer, then created a turnover before scoring a highlight-reel shortie that stood up as the game-winner.

The goal was his 40th career game-winner, making him the sixth Flame ever to reach that milestone with the club. That list also includes Jarome Iginla (83), Theoren Fleury (53), Sean Monahan (47), Joe Nieuwendyk (43) and Johnny Gaudreau (41).

Islanders - Matthew Schaefer

He's not just the defenceman of the future for the Islanders, he's the defenceman of the present, too.

Schaefer is enjoying a remarkable rookie campaign, and is in the conversation to become the first Islander to win the Calder Trophy since Mathew Barzal claimed it in 2018.

His 13 goals rank fourth among NHL blueliners, and his half-dozen powerplay goals are tied for the league lead among defencemen.