PERFECT TONIC

It was just what the doctor ordered.
The Flames snapped out of their losing funk, dumping the visiting Edmonton Oilers 3-2 Saturday night.

Goaltender Mike Smith was named the game's first star, turning aside 34 shots, while Dougie Hamilton, Garnet Hathaway and Mikael Backlund scored for the homeside.
Anton Slepyshev and Michael Cammalleri scored for the Oilers. Cam Talbot made four saves on seven shots but was replaced for the third period by Al Montoya, who stopped all 13 shots he faced.
The game featured the NHL debut of Spencer Foo and the return to the lineup of Johnny Gaudreau, who had missed the last two games after going home to be with his family after dad Guy suffered a cardiac event.
As with most installments of the Battle of Alberta, it was a spirited affair.
Smith got into a pushing match with Milan Lucic where a few shots were thrown by the two after Lucic slashed Mark Giordano.
Later, Tanner Glass and Lucic would fight.
Slepyshev opened the scoring after a rare Smith miscue less than three minutes into the game.
Smith played the puck behind his net but Zach Kassian intercepted his pass attempt for Brett Kulak, and fed the puck out to Slepyshev who fired it into an empty net.
The Flames challenged the goal as off-side but lost, leading to a minor penalty for delay of game.

Hamilton, who came into the night tied for the NHL's goal-scoring lead among defencemen with 16 tallies, tied it up with his 17th of the season at the 6:34 mark - in part to some hark work from Michael Frolik, who kept the puck in the Oilers zone as Kris Russell tried to clear it.
Frolik passed to Mikael Backlund, who feed Hamilton as he skated into the high slot and snapped a wrister high, glove-side on Talbot.
Smith later showed how effective he can be playing the puck, helping get it out of the Flames zone late in an Oilers powerplay, with Hathaway skating in on his off-wing and snapping a perfectly placed shot from 20-feet out, far-side past Talbot.
Less than four minutes later, Talbot lost the handle on a rebound after making the initial save on a floater by Michael Stone from the blueline and Backlund grabbed the puck as he skated across the crease and slipped it home.
Hamilton beat Talbot but not the iron on a powerplay before the period ended, almost putting the homeside up by three.
After keeping the puck in Calgary's zone for an extended period past the midway point of the second frame, Cammalleri got the Oilers back within one when he tipped Andrej Sekera's shot past Smith.
The Oiles won his year's BOA season series 3-2, but the Flames won the final two installments.

ONE-TIMERS:

The Flames are now 11-13-3 against the Pacific Division this season … Foo, an Edmonton native who skated on a line with Nicholas Shore and Gaudreau Saturday, played his junior hockey with the AJHL's Bonnyville Pontiacs from 2012 to 2014 before leaving to play college hockey at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. The highly-sought after free agent signed with the Flames last summer and spent this season with the AHL Stockton Heat.

NEXT UP:

The Flames host the Arizona Coyotes Tuesday night (7 p.m. MT, TV: Sportsnet West, RADIO: Sportsnet 960 The FAN). Come down to the Scotiabank Saddledome early and score some deals! From 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., there are food, drink and merchandise specials. You can get a 14 oz. domestic draught, 1 oz. highball, 6 oz. house wine, a cheeseburger or a pizza slice for just $5 each at the concessions. As well, take an additional 10% of all regular-priced Fanattic merchandise.