The Flames are coming off a frustrating 3-2 overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks in their home opener on Monday night to fall to 0-1-1 on the season. Conversely, the Red Wings have emerged as one of the season’s early surprise stories after posting decisive victories over the visiting Vancouver Canucks and Columbus Blue Jackets.

Despite their early-season struggles, the Flames are set to hit the ice at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday night perched as -137 favourites to win on the NHL odds, with the total pegged at 5.5.

Flames vs. Red Wings NHL Betting Odds

There has been virtually no line movement since Calgary opened as -136 chalk despite the betting action tilting heavily in favour of the Red Wings, with 57 per cent of the bets. The total has also remained unchanged since opening at 5.5, but sports bettors have placed 87 per cent of bets on the OVER.

Thursday’s clash marks the first meeting between these two teams since February 2020. The Flames have held the upper hand when facing Detroit. Calgary has tallied four straight victories, all by multi-goal margins, and taken home the win in nine of their past 11 overall tilts. High scoring has been the hallmark of recent matchups between these clubs, who have combined to score an average of over 8.1 total goals per game over their past six clashes. That has paid dividends to sports bettors taking the OVER, which has gone 5-0-4 over their past nine dates.

Calgary Flames

Calgary shooters faced a hot goaltender in this week’s loss to the Ducks, as John Gibson turned aside 41 of 43 shots to seal the win. The club was equally snake bitten in their season opener against Edmonton, dropping a 5-2 decision despite outshooting Edmonton by a wide 47-33 margin. One of the bright spots on an otherwise disappointing Flames squad last season, goaltender Jacob Markstrom has stumbled out of the gate, surrendering seven total goals on just 59 total shots. However, Markstrom has produced consistent results in past appearances against Detroit, racking up a .940 save percentage while going 2-0-1 in his past three.

Detroit Red Wings

A pair of rookies have sparked the club’s offence during the Red Wings’ very respectable 2-0-1 start. Forward Lucas Raymond opened the scoring in this week’s 4-1 win over Columbus, and has tallied three points in his first four outings. Defenceman Moritz Seider has also lived up to expectations in the early going, contributing three assists including a pair of helpers in the club’s 7-6 overtime loss to Tampa Bay on opening night. Seider has also quickly established his presence on the Detroit power play, racking up a team-leading 3:42 of ice time per game with the man advantage. Goaltender Thomas Greiss also deserves an enormous amount of credit for Detroit’s early success, surrendering just two total goals while earning the win in each of the club’s past two outings.

NHL Prediction: Who Will Win Flames vs. Red Wings?

• Regular Season
• Playoffs

Flames Team Leaders

CAL

Points	Johnny Gaudreau 115
+ / -	Johnny Gaudreau 64
Shots	Johnny Gaudreau 262
Penalty Mins	Milan Lucic 84
Wins	Jacob Markstrom 37
GAA	Jacob Markstrom 2.22

DET

Points	Dylan Larkin 69
+ / -	Kyle Criscuolo 1
Shots	Dylan Larkin 212
Penalty Mins	Givani Smith 108
Wins	Alex Nedeljkovic 20
GAA	Magnus Hellberg 3

CAL

Points	Johnny Gaudreau 14
+ / -	Mikael Backlund 6
Shots	Johnny Gaudreau 52
Penalty Mins	Milan Lucic 31
Wins	Jacob Markstrom 5
GAA	Jacob Markstrom 2.95

DET

Points
+ / -
Shots	Did not qualify
Penalty Mins
Wins
GAA

• Regular Season
• Playoffs

Red Wings Team Leaders

CAL

Points	Johnny Gaudreau 115
+ / -	Johnny Gaudreau 64
Shots	Johnny Gaudreau 262
Penalty Mins	Milan Lucic 84
Wins	Jacob Markstrom 37
GAA	Jacob Markstrom 2.22

DET

Points	Dylan Larkin 69
+ / -	Kyle Criscuolo 1
Shots	Dylan Larkin 212
Penalty Mins	Givani Smith 108
Wins	Alex Nedeljkovic 20
GAA	Magnus Hellberg 3

CAL

Points	Johnny Gaudreau 14
+ / -	Mikael Backlund 6
Shots	Johnny Gaudreau 52
Penalty Mins	Milan Lucic 31
Wins	Jacob Markstrom 5
GAA	Jacob Markstrom 2.95

DET

Points
+ / -
Shots	Did not qualify
Penalty Mins
Wins
GAA

Injuries

Calgary

Christopher Tanev (D)

Ques Tues Lower Body - 14 / 05 / 22

Nikita Zadorov (D)

Ques Sun Poss. Suspension - 14 / 05 / 22

Brett Ritchie (RW)

Ques Sun Undisclosed - 11 / 05 / 22

Michael Stone (D)

Ques Wed Undisclosed - 11 / 05 / 22

Trevor Lewis (C)

Out indefinitely Personal - 28 / 04 / 22

Jacob Markstrom (G)

Out Sat Rest - 23 / 04 / 22

Noah Hanifin (D)

Ques Thurs Lower Body - 20 / 04 / 22

Christopher Tanev (D)

Ques Sat Head - 14 / 04 / 22

Nikita Zadorov (D)

Ques Sat Undisclosed - 08 / 04 / 22

Erik Gudbranson (D)

Prob Thurs Undisclosed - 08 / 04 / 22

Detroit

Adam Erne (LW)

Ques Fri Undisclosed - 27 / 04 / 22

Marc Staal (D)

Out indefinitely Illness - 26 / 04 / 22

Filip Zadina (RW)

out for season Illness - 21 / 04 / 22

Alex Nedeljkovic (G)

Ques Thurs Illness - 19 / 04 / 22

Oskar Sundqvist (C)

Ques Tues Illness - 17 / 04 / 22

Jake Walman (D)

Ques Tues Upper Body - 09 / 04 / 22

Tyler Bertuzzi (LW)

Out Wed Eligibility - 06 / 04 / 22

Sam Gagner (C)

Ques Tues Undisclosed - 03 / 04 / 22

Tyler Bertuzzi (LW)

Out Sun Personal - 02 / 04 / 22

Filip Hronek (D)

Prob Sun Undisclosed - 02 / 04 / 22

Injuries

Calgary

player (position)	status		ats*current	o/u*	notes
Christopher Tanev (D)	Ques Tues	Lower Body - 14 / 05 / 22	2-5	4-2-1	+ -
Tanev is hampered by a lower-body injury, and it is undetermined if he will face the Oilers in Game 4 of the Western Conference second round.
Nikita Zadorov (D)	Ques Sun	Poss. Suspension - 14 / 05 / 22	2-5	4-2-1	+ -
Zadorov is facing a potential suspension for a high hit, and it is unclear if he will be available for Game 7 of the Western Conference first round versus the Stars.
Brett Ritchie (RW)	Ques Sun	Undisclosed - 11 / 05 / 22	3-5	4-3-1	+ -
Ritchie is managing an unknown issue, and it is unclear if he will participate in Game 7 of the Western Conference first round versus the Stars.
Michael Stone (D)	Ques Wed	Undisclosed - 11 / 05 / 22	3-5	4-3-1	+ -
Stone is bothered by an unspecified ailment, and it remains to be seen if he will face the Stars in Game 5 of the Western Conference first round.
Trevor Lewis (C)	Out indefinitely	Personal - 28 / 04 / 22	4-10	6-7-1	+ -
Lewis is away from the team for the birth of his child, and he will miss an undetermined length of time.
Jacob Markstrom (G)	Out Sat	Rest - 23 / 04 / 22	6-10	7-7-2	+ -
Markstrom will not be active against the Canucks on Saturday, as he will be given a day of rest.
Noah Hanifin (D)	Ques Thurs	Lower Body - 20 / 04 / 22	6-11	7-8-2	+ -
Hanifin is tending to a lower-body injury, and it is unknown if he will play against the Stars on Thursday.
Christopher Tanev (D)	Ques Sat	Head - 14 / 04 / 22	9-12	11-8-2	+ -
Tanev was removed from the last contest due to a head injury, and it is unknown if he will face the Coyotes on Saturday.
Nikita Zadorov (D)	Ques Sat	Undisclosed - 08 / 04 / 22	12-12	11-10-3	+ -
Zadorov sat out the last contest with an undefined issue, and it has yet to be established if he will battle Kraken on Saturday.
Erik Gudbranson (D)	Prob Thurs	Undisclosed - 08 / 04 / 22	12-12	11-10-3	+ -
Gudbranson has missed the previous three contests due to an unknown issue, but it is projected that he will suit up for Thursday's game against the Golden Knights.

Detroit

player (position)	status		ats*current	o/u*	notes
Adam Erne (LW)	Ques Fri	Undisclosed - 27 / 04 / 22	0-1	0-1	+ -
Erne sat out the last game with an unknown ailment, and it is unclear if he will take on the Devils on Friday.
Marc Staal (D)	Out indefinitely	Illness - 26 / 04 / 22	1-1	0-2	+ -
Staal has been entered in the league's COVID-19 protocol, and he will miss an undetermined length of time.
Filip Zadina (RW)	out for season	Illness - 21 / 04 / 22	2-3	2-2-1	+ -
Zadina is idle due to a appendicitis, and it is unlikely that he will return for the remainder of the 2021-22 season.
Alex Nedeljkovic (G)	Ques Thurs	Illness - 19 / 04 / 22	2-4	2-2-2	+ -
Nedeljkovic missed the last game due to an illness, and it is unknown if he will line up against the Panthers on Thursday.
Oskar Sundqvist (C)	Ques Tues	Illness - 17 / 04 / 22	2-5	2-3-2	+ -
Sundqvist was held out of the previous game with an illness, and it is uncertain if he will dress for Tuesday's clash versus the Lightning.
Jake Walman (D)	Ques Tues	Upper Body - 09 / 04 / 22	5-6	3-6-2	+ -
Walman sat out the last game with an upper-body injury, and it is undetermined if he will take on the Senators on Tuesday.
Tyler Bertuzzi (LW)	Out Wed	Eligibility - 06 / 04 / 22	6-6	4-6-2	+ -
Bertuzzi has made the personal decision to not get vaccinated, he will not be available for Wednesday's contest against the Jets due to his vaccination status.
Sam Gagner (C)	Ques Tues	Undisclosed - 03 / 04 / 22	6-8	6-6-2	+ -
Gagner sat out the last contest with an unknown issue, and it is undetermined if he will lace up for Tuesday's battle with the Bruins.
Tyler Bertuzzi (LW)	Out Sun	Personal - 02 / 04 / 22	6-8	6-6-2	+ -
Bertuzzi will not play Thursday against the Senators as per Canadian provincial regulations regarding COVID-19.
Filip Hronek (D)	Prob Sun	Undisclosed - 02 / 04 / 22	6-8	6-6-2	+ -
Hronek is managing an unspecified issue, but he is likely to partake in Sunday's tilt with the Senators.