Northwest Division showdown
Posted January 5, 2011 2:43 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – The Vancouver Canucks host the Calgary Flames tonight. The club matched their longest win streak of the season by beating San Jose Monday night for their sixth straight victory. Seven is a good possibility against the Flames.
Calgary sits a full 16 points behind Vancouver in the Northwest Division but had won four straight until dropping a 4-1 decision to the New York Islanders on Monday.
Roberto Luongo, this week’s NHL second star of the week, will return to net tonight. Luongo has gone 9-2-1 with a 2.19 goals against average in his last 12 home starts against Calgary. Flames goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff has not played well in recent years in Vancouver. The Finnish netminder is 2-7-0 in his last nine starts at Rogers Arena.
Canucks will also return winger Mason Raymond to the second line with Ryan Kesler and Jeff Tambellini. Raymond was on the fourth line with Alex Bolduc and Tanner Glass in Monday’s win over San Jose. Andrew Alberts will be back on the blue line with Aaron Rome becoming a healthy scratch.
Game time is 7 p.m.
Ring of Honour:
The Canucks also announced today that former great Thomas Gradin will be the next former Canuck inducted into the club’s Ring of Honour.
Gradin was one of Vancouver’s first European-born players. He played eight of his nine NHL seasons in a Canucks uniform from 1978-79 to 1985-86. He led the Canucks in scoring twice and was named an NHL All-star in 1985.
Gradin helped Vancouver to its first ever Stanley Cup Final appearance in 1982.
