Calgary head coach Glen Gulutzan made a noteworthy decision over the weekend, opting to sit No. 1 netminder Brian Elliott against his former team, the St. Louis Blues, in favor of backup Chad Johnson.
The move didn’t pay off. Calgary lost 6-4, with Johnson allowing five goals on 39 shots.
So now, Elliott is back in goal was the Flames take on the ‘Hawks tonight at the United Center.
Acquired to fix the goaltending issues that plagued Calgary all of last season, Elliott has gone 0-3-0 with an .839 save percentage and 4.72 GAA.
Not good, obviously -- especially for a 31-year-old pending UFA that’s looking to score a contract extension.
The Flames will hope that Elliott’s former goalie partner, Jake Allen, is something of a psychic. Over the weekend, Allen predicted that Elliott “will find his game very soon,” and tonight would be a good night for that to happen -- Chicago’s offense has been firing over the last four games, finding the back of the net 16 times.
That said, the ‘Hawks are facing issues of their own.
They’ll give Corey Crawford the start tonight.
Elsewhere...
-- Just one other game on the ledger, as the Flyers will take on the Habs in Montreal. Philly is going with Steve Mason, who allowed three goals on 30 shots in a win over Carolina on Saturday. The Canadiens are going with Carey Price, who allowed two goals on 21 shots in a win over Boston on Saturday.