PREVIEW: On Monday, Red Wings open crucial four-game homestand versus Flames

DETROIT – Knowing Hockeytown faithful will bring the energy and provide that competitive advantage as they kick off a crucial four-game homestand, the Detroit Red Wings and Calgary Flames will face off at Little Caesars Arena on Monday night.

“It’s been a lot of fun and exciting in that way, being the Centennial year with lots of different things for people to be excited about and celebrate the history of the team,” James van Riemsdyk said of the fan support the club’s received this season. “And now in the present, we want to put forward that product and game that the fans are proud of and represents the organization well.”

Puck drop for the second and final regular-season matchup between Detroit (36-23-8; 80 points) and Calgary (26-33-7; 59 points) is set for 7:00 p.m., with broadcast coverage on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit and the Red Wings Radio Network (97.1 The Ticket in Detroit). Back on Dec. 10 at Scotiabank Saddledome, the Red Wings held off the Flames for a 4-3 victory.

“These are the games you want to be playing as players down the stretch,” van Riemsdyk added. “They mean so much. Every point counts. It’s going to be a lot of fun. I’m sure the building’s going to be a great atmosphere night in and night out as we finish out here.”

Detroit went 1-2-1 on its most recent four-game road trip, which ended with a 3–2 overtime loss to the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center on Saturday. Although they couldn’t halt their winless skid, Moritz Seider believes the Red Wings’ play in the third period was a response they can build off.

“Playing against a really hot team and we find a way to even it down to two, you give yourself a chance of winning the game,” Seider said. “If we take that into the next couple of weeks, that should give us a lot of confidence.”

Also significant, Detroit rallied to grab an important point in Dallas without the services of captain Dylan Larkin (lower body), Andrew Copp (lower body), Michael Rasmussen (undisclosed) and Michael Brandsegg-Nygard (undisclosed).

“Copper skating [on Monday morning] is a positive thing, but we’re not changing the prognosis with him and Larks right now,” Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan said. “Ras is still going to be a week, and Brands is skating. He looked better today than he has, so that’s a good sign. We said day-to-day, that hasn’t changed.”

Like Detroit, Calgary fell short but showed some serious pushback in the final frame of its latest outing, a 3-2 loss to the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on Saturday. That setback moved the Flames, who currently sit seventh in the Western Conference’s Pacific Division, to 1-3-0 in their last four games.

No Calgary skater has reached 40 points this season, but captain Mikael Backlund is close with a team-high 38 points (15 goals, 23 assists) and Morgan Frost ranks second with 32 points (14 goals, 18 assists). Through 48 appearances, netminder Dustin Wolf has a 19-24-3 record with a 3.00 goals-against average and .898 save percentage.

“We just want the players that are elevated to give us their game,” McLellan said. “They don’t have to be Superman or anything like that. They just have to play to the best of their abilities. Don’t play outside your skin. Do what you do and do it to the best of your abilities, and we’ll be just fine.”