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Saturday, 08 October 2011 10:00

Written by Seth Rorabaugh

A preview of the Flames.

When and where: 10 p.m., EDT, Scotiabank Saddledome.

TV: Root Sports, CBC.

2010-11 Record: 49-21-12, 94 points. The Flames finished in 10th place in the Western Conference and second place in the Northwest Division.

2010-11 Leading Scorer: Jarome Iginla (right), 86 points (43 goals, 43 assists).

Last Game: 3-2 overtime home loss to the Canucks, April 9. Mark Giordano had two assists for the Flames.

Last Game against the Penguins: 4-1 road loss, Nov. 27, 2010. Sidney Crosby had a hat trick as well as his 200th career goal.

Flames Player We Would Bet Money On Scoring: Alex Tanguay. He ended last season on a five-game scoring streak.

Ex-Penguins on the Flames: Tom Kostopoulos, RW.

Ex-Flames on the Penguins: Jason Botterill, assistant general manager.

Useless Flames Trivia Vaguely Related to the Penguins: Former Penguins forward Joe Mullen holds the Flames franchise record for game-winning goals in a season with 12 in 1986-87.

Best Flames Video We Could Find: Flames goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff is popular:

Probable goaltenders: Marc-Andre Fleury (1-0-0, 2.77 GAA, .917 SV%) for the Penguins and Miikka Kiprusoff (37-24-6, 2.63 GAA, .906 SV% in 2010-11) for the Flames.

Injuries: For the Penguins, center Jordan Staal (dehydration) is probable. Defenseman Brook Orpik (abdominal) is questionable. Defenseman Roberto Bortuzzo (knee), Boris Valabik (knee), center Sidney Crosby (concussion), left winger Dustin Jeffrey (knee) and right winger Nick Petersen (concussion) are on injured reserve. For the Flames, center Mikael Backlund (finger), left wing Raitis Ivanans (concussion) and center Brendan Morrison (knee) are on injured reserve.

Potential lines and defensive pairings: The Penguins' primary lines and defensive pairings in practice yesterday were: (PG+)

Steve Sullivan  -Evgeni Malkin - James Neal
Chris Kunitz - *-Sidney Crosby - Tyler Kennedy
Matt Cooke - Mark Letestu - Pascal Dupuis
Steve MacIntyre - Dustin Jeffrey - Richard Park

*-Filled in for Staal.

-The Flames projected lines:

Alex Tanguay - David Moss - Jarome Iginla
Curtis Glencross - Olli Jokinen - Lee Stempniak
Niklas Hagman - Roman Horak - Rene Bourque
Tom Kostopoulos - Matt Stajan - Tim Jackman

Mark Giordano - Scott Hannan
Chris Butler - Jay Bouwmeester
Anton Babchuk - Cory Sarich

Notes:

-Staal skipped practice for a "maintenance day."

-Staal has 199 career points.

-Kunitz has 98 career points with the Penguins.

-Dupuis has 148 career assists.

-The Flames aren't terribly upset that Crosby is sidelined.

-Craig Adams. Flames fan:

-Fleury will appear on Hockey Night In Canada's After Hours segment following the game:

-Iginla missed most of the preseason due to a back ailment.

-By the looks of this photo on the Flames' official Facebook page, they'll be wearing their stunning throwback red jerseys.

-Crosby and Iginla will always be linked in the hearts of Canadians.

-Iginla might not have a classic No. 1 center on his line, but he does have a pretty dang good opposite winger in Tanguay.

-Our live blog begins at approximately 10 p.m. Grab some coffee and please tune in.

(Photo: Harry How/Getty Images)

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written by PensFan77, October 08, 2011 - 11:31 AM

**Scotiabank Saddledome

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