Jarome Iginla and the Calgary Flames will be invading Denver on Saturday night, where they will take on Joe Sakic and the Colorado Avalanche. The Avs have struggled a bit of late, losing three straight games before Thursday night’s 3-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers, but they still maintain their tenuous hold on the Northwest Division lead. Meanwhile, the Flames are mired in fourth place, and will be looking to get a big win over their division rivals to help them get back on track.

Televised in brilliant 1080i on HDNet, this will be a thrilling Northwest Division battle that you definitely won't want to miss!

Flames to Watch

Calgary’s top line has been exceptional thus far this season, with captain Jarome Iginla leading the way (28 points in 22 games, plus-seven rating). Former Avs forward Alex Tanguay has been a great fit on the left side of that line, his playmaking ability complementing Iginla quite well. And in the middle, the highly underrated Daymond Langkow has developed into a terrific first-line pivot.

Swedish sensation Kristian Huselius may well be the most skilled Flames forward, capable of carving his way through opposing defenses with his dazzling stickhandling and fancy footwork. But consistency eludes, Huselius, who has been held scoreless in half the Flames’ games. In order for Calgary to emerge as a bona fide Stanley Cup contender, they will need for Huselius to contribute regularly and turn their second line into a consistently dangerous scoring threat.

Defenseman Dion Phaneuf is one of the Flames’ most exciting players to watch. He combines a blistering shot from the point with the capacity to deliver game-changing open-ice hits, and is the closest thing to a young Scott Stevens we’ve seen since, well, Scott Stevens himself. Phaneuf is a future Norris Trophy winner, and might well find himself amongst the finalists as soon as this season.

In goal, fabulous Finn Miikka Kiprusoff has been one of the NHL’s finest netminders dating back to the 2003-04 season, when he backstopped the Flames to Game Seven of the Cup Finals. He has struggled mightily in the early going this season; look for “Kipper” to start working himself back into elite-level form, with tonight’s game a great time to start.

Avs to Watch

Back in the 1988-89 season, Slovakian forward Peter Stastny was without question the offensive leader of the Quebec Nordiques. He scored 85 points in 72 games that year to lead the team, while a young rookie named Joe Sakic provided a very valuable supporting contribution (62 points in 70 games). As it turned out, it was the last time Stastny would lead the Nordiques in scoring; by the next year, Sakic had officially taken the mantle as the team’s offensive leader.

Over the course of the next 18 seasons, Sakic became (and remained) the face of the franchise. From their controversial move to Denver during the summer of 1995 to their Stanley Cup victories in 1996 and 2001, Sakic led the team to new heights while earning an inevitable spot for himself in the Hockey Hall of Fame. And for the now-Colorado Avalanche, it appears that history is repeating itself.

Peter’s son Paul broke into the Avs’ lineup with a bang last season, breaking his father’s team record point-scoring streak for a rookie and getting named as a finalist for the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie. Stastny finished third on the Avs in scoring with 78 points, while Sakic led the team with 100 points.

This season, Stastny—like Sakic before him—appears to be taking over as Colorado’s most dangerous scoring threat. With 22 points in 17 games, he is leading the team in scoring, and his presence is giving Denver’s hockey fans hope that a post-Sakic swoon might not be as inevitable as has been speculated.

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