(Sports Network) - The Calgary Flames continue Monday what has so far been a perfect road trip, as they visit the Nashville Predators at the Sommet Center.
The Flames have won four of their last five on the road, including the first two contests of a six-game swing. Calgary is 9-1-3 as the road club this year.
After kicking off the trip with a 3-0 victory in Detroit on Friday, Calgary skated to a 4-3 shootout victory at Columbus. Dustin Boyd and Nigel Dawes scored just 1:19 apart in the third period to force overtime, and Jamie Lundmark's shootout tally in the fourth round clinched the victory.
Making his third start of the season, Curtis McElhinney made 29 saves to give the Flames their fourth win in five games. Olli Jokinen finished with a goal and an assist.
"We fought back," said Calgary head coach Brent Sutter. "It was a game where I thought the first 20 or 30 minutes we played a really good road game. We just did the right things and then we got away from our game in the last 10 or 12 minutes of the second period. We started to spend too much time in our own zone and got sloppy. We regrouped in the third."
Calgary, which is two points up on Colorado for first place in the Northwest Division, is likely to turn back to Miikka Kiprusoff in net tonight. Kiprusoff is 8-7-1 with a tie and 2.93 goals-against average versus the Predators. He posted a 3.01 GAA in four starts versus them last year, as the Flames took all four matchups.
It's an interesting match-up for Kiprusoff, who will likely have countryman Pekka Rinne as his counterpart in goal. Kiprusoff said last week that he would likely not play for the Finnish team at the Vancouver Olympics unless he were named starter. Rinne, along with Antero Niittymaki of the Lightning, are considered next-in-line to start for Finland should the top job not go to Kiprusoff.
Calgary has won seven of the last nine meetings between the clubs as well, taking two straight and three of its last four in Nashville.
The Predators do come in on a roll, as they have won eight of their last nine. After having a seven-game win streak end on Friday in a loss to St. Louis, Nashville rebounded to post a 4-1 triumph over Florida the following night.
Dan Hamhuis had a goal, his first since February 12, and an assist, while David Legwand and J.P. Dumont also scored. Dan Ellis made 23 saves in the victory.
Ellis was making his first start since November 10, as Pekka Rinne had been in net for the last eight games.
"Dan Ellis looked really solid. He didn't look rusty at all," said head coach Barry Trotz. "I thought Ellis would be fine, because he prepared really well. There were times last year when he didn't prepare the way I thought he should, and it started to show in his game. I was confident that he'd be fine. He's got good practice habits, and he hasn't let it slip. He's matured from last year.
Ellis is 1-3-0 with a 3.10 GAA versus the Flames, while Rinne is 0-1-0 with a 5.44 GAA against them having allowed seven goals on 42 shots.
Nashville's hard charge as of late has it four points back of Central Division-leading Chicago. The Preds end a three-game homestand tonight and are 9-4-0 as the host, as they have won eight of their last nine at Sommet Center.