Preview Roundups
March 27, 2015
Calgary at Minnesota 8:00 PM ET
Both the Calgary Flames and Minnesota Wild are battling for their postseason lives as they face off Friday at Xcel Energy Center. The Flames are coming off a 4-3 shootout loss to the Dallas Stars and find themselves tangling with Los Angeles for the final automatic playoff spot in the Pacific Division. The Wild are comfortably in a Western Conference wild-card spot, but still trail Chicago for third place in the Central despite Tuesday's 2-1 win over the Islanders.
Columbus at Chicago 8:30 PM ET
The Chicago Blackhawks look to avoid a third loss in four games when they host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday. Chicago completed a 2-2-0 road trip during which it scored a total of five goals with a 4-1 setback at Philadelphia on Wednesday. The Blackhawks, who have won nine of their last 13 contests (9-3-1), have a three-point lead over Minnesota for third place in the Central Division and are four ahead of Winnipeg.
Dallas at Edmonton 9:30 PM ET
It may be far too little and much too late, but three of the Edmonton Oilers' top offensive options are finally starting to show signs of life as the season winds down. The Oilers hope to see the trend continue Friday night as they host the Dallas Stars in their third and final meeting of the season. The Stars have taken the first two encounters, including a thrilling 6-5 shootout decision Dec. 21 in which Dallas rebounded from a 5-2 second-period deficit to win.