5 Things - Flames vs. Sharks

1. Sweet Home Alberta

It's another quick trip home.

And over the next 120 minutes or more of hockey, a hope that familiar environs bring with them happy totals, as the Flames open a two-game homestand against the Sharks at the Scotiabank Saddledome. GET TICKETS

The team flew home from Missouri Wednesday after enduring a tough go on the road. But here in their home rink, there's hope that fortunes will change for the better against a San Jose team against whom Calgary enjoyed considerable success a season ago.

The play of Matt Coronato is one reason to have hope. Over the past three games, he's launched 22 pucks on goal and his goal in St. Louis Tuesday night was a thing of beauty, an act of offensive confidence that lit a spark under the team.

Every little bit of positivity helps, as the Flames get set for another busy seven day stretch that will see them play four times in three different time zones as this hectic fall schedule continues.

"You go a couple games without scoring, like, it wears on them, for sure," Head Coach Ryan Huska said after Tuesday's 3-2 loss in the Show Me State. "There's no doubt about that, but I think the key thing is to make sure you stay true to how you have to play the game.

"Matt’s a good example of that over the last three games. He's shooting the puck a ton. He'll continue to get rewarded if he continues to do what he's done in the last three games."

It's that commitment to doing things the right way that - according to Huska - has helped Coronato be one of the team's most dangerous threats over the past week.

And it's Huska's hope that Tuesday's goal - a top-shelf snipe that showcased the Long Islander's talent at ripping pucks from just about anywhere in the offensive zone - is a sign of things to come.

"He's been a threat now again, which is important for our team," said Huska. "So he's doing the right things to put himself in positions to get pucks back.

"And to me, he's more competitive on and at the puck right now, and that's why he's having some success."

The Flames announced they recalled Rory Kerins Thursday morning. CLICK FOR MORE

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2. Know Your Enemy

The Sharks are circling the waters, smelling blood so to speak.

Winners of four straight games, and owners of a 7-2-1 record over their last 10 games, San Jose comes to town on the heels of a 2-1 overtime victory Tuesday night in Minnesota.

Macklin Celebrini posted a pair of assists, including on Collin Graf's game-winner 2:41 into overtime, while fellow young star Will Smith tallied the other Sharks marker.

But still, San Jose had to rally from an early deficit Tuesday night in order to claim two points in the State of Hockey.

"It was better in our third (period),” Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky said of his team's performance. "First two, arguably our worst two first periods of the year. But we found a way, and that’s the most important thing. It’s a hard league to win in, so we can’t dwell on it."

Goaltender Yaroslav Askarov - a former No.-11 pick by the Nashville Predators - made 28 saves in the win, and he's been earning the lion's share of the starts in goal of late. In fact, the 23-year-old is just two starts away from matching his NHL career high for a single season already.

But the story in San Jose revolves around Celebrini and Smith. The duo have combined for 17 goals and 43 points to start the season - they sit 1-2 on the Sharks list of scoring leaders.

Celebrini, who had six points in eight games for Canada at last spring's World Championships, is doing his best to stake a claim for a Canadian Olympic roster spot, too.

3. Fast Facts

2025-26 Season Series

Calgary and San Jose will face each other a total of four times during the 2025-26 season, with tonight marking the first of those meetings.

The Flames will travel to the Bay Area Dec. 16, then welcome the Sharks back to the 'Dome for a Saturday matinee Jan. 31. The season series will then wrap up at SAP Center Feb. 26, in Calgary's first game following the Olympic break.

Last season, the Flames swept the four-game set with the Sharks, earning a 5-2 triumph in the most recent encounter Apr. 13. Nazem Kadri led Calgary with a goal and six assists over last year's season series, with Jonathan Huberdeau close behind with a half-dozen points (3G, 3A) of his own.

Dustin Wolf was the winning netminder in each of the four meetings during the 2024-25 campaign.

Did You Know?

With his next assist, Morgan Frost will become the 11th player from the 2017 NHL Draft to earn 100 helpers in the NHL.

Calgarian Cale Makar (Colorado Avalanche) leads all 2017 Draftees with 329 assists, with Robert Thomas (St. Louis Blues - 296) and Elias Pettersson (Vancouver Canucks - 282) rounding out the top three.

4. Getting His Phil

Flames prospect Mace'o Phillips got some happy news Wednesday, as he was named to the U.S. squad set to compete at this year's World Junior 'A' Challenge in Quebec next month.

Phillips - a third-round pick by Calgary in this past June's Draft - returned to the USHL's Green Bay Gamblers lineup this past weekend after missing two weeks due to injury. In 10 appearances, the defenceman has put up a goal and three points.

Phillips isn't the only 2025 Flames draftee to get a moment in the spotlight this week, either.

Centre Cole Reschny - the No.-18 pick in this year's Draft - was named the National Collegiate Hockey Conference's Forward of the Week Tuesday.

The Macklin, Sask. product put up a goal and four assists over the weekend as North Dakota swept a two-game series at Omaha, winning by 7-2 and 4-1 scorelines.

5. Players To Watch

Flames - Rasmus Andersson

Andersson snapped home his third goal of the season in Tuesday's loss to the Blues, and he's been an absolute workhorse on the blue line over the past nine games.

Since Oct. 28, Andersson's ice-time has eclipsed 24 minutes on seven occasions, including 27:07 of work this past Friday against Chicago. He's one of two Flames (the other being MacKenzie Weegar) inside the top 20 NHL leaders in average ice-time per game, too.

But Andersson's goal Tuesday served as a milestone marker as well.

The tally was the 50th of his NHL career, and in doing so, Andersson became just the eighth defenceman in Flames franchise history to reach that number.

Below is the list of all-time Flames defenceman goal-scoring leaders:

• Al MacInnis - 213
• Mark Giordano - 143
• Gary Suter - 128
• Paul Reinhart - 109
• Dion Phaneuf - 75
• Jamie Macoun - 62
• Phil Housley - 50
• Rasmus Andersson - 50

Sharks - Macklin Celebrini

He enjoyed a brilliant rookie season, and Celebrini's sophomore campaign has seen his game rise to new heights.

The North Vancouver, B.C. product entered Wednesday's slate of games tied for second in NHL scoring with 26 points, and arrives in Calgary with three goals and eight points over his current four-game streak.

Bear in mind, Celebrini doesn't turn 20 until June of 2026.

Last year against the Flames, Celebrini had two goals and four points from the four-game season series.