On Thursday, the Calgary Flames announced they were opening the Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday as part of the NHL's Phase 2 of its Return to Play protocol. It didn't take long to get several of their players back on the ice.

Mark Giordano, Michael Stone, Mark Jankowski, Dillon Dube and Matthew Phillips took part in an on-ice session Friday, the team announced.

The Flames also said Tobias Rieder has arrived back in Calgary and will join the group's sessions following a two-week quarantine mandated by federal law. 

Should the league return this summer, the Flames will take on the Winnipeg Jets in an all-Canadian play-in series. Read more about the showdown from TSN's Travis Yost here.

The NHL and NHLPA announced on Thursday that training camp is scheduled to open on July 10, which could mean Phase 4 -- a formal return to games -- might return early in August.

At the time of the league's pausing on March 12, the Flames sat third in the Pacific Divison with 79 points (36-27-7).