Flames choose sides with Super Bowl picks, ready for their own playoff push

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Calgary Flames forward Milan Lucic likes the Cincinnati Bengals in Sunday’s big game.

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“I’m going to ride the hot hand of Joe Burrow,” he grinned. “He’s kind of won me over this year, especially with his look and his glasses and his cool, calm and confidence. So I’m going to take Cincy on this one.”

Chris Tanev likes the Los Angeles Rams to win. Predictable, perhaps, since he gets paid primarily to keep points off the board.

“I think L.A.’s defence is too good,” said the Flames’ rock-solid rearguard. “I think they’re going to get a lot on pressure on ’em and maybe force some turnovers and sacks. They’ve been doing it all playoffs.”

And Mikael Backlund? Born and raised in Sweden, the second-line centre prefers the other football.

Similar to millions of others, he likes Super Bowl Sunday for the snacks.

“I’m excited to get together with the team and eat some good food,” Backlund said. “Other than that, I’m hoping for a good game. That’s always what I’m hoping for with Super Bowl, because it’s the only time I watch football.”

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Whether you’re passionate about pigskin or not, it’s tough to beat the intensity and emotion of a title tilt.

So as Burrow is trying to Sunday to evade the grasp of pass-rushing ace Aaron Donald and to cap the Bengals’ fairytale climb from worst-to-could-be-first, as opposing quarterback Matthew Stafford and the Rams are trying to capitalize on home-turf advantage at state-of-the-art SoFi Stadium in SoCal, you can’t blame Flames fans if they’re also daydreaming about the possibility of watching the local hockey heroes make a playoff run of their own.

Heading into Saturday’s late date against the New York Islanders, the Flames were riding a five-game win streak.

They boast the best points percentage in the NHL’s Pacific Division, a good omen for a group with several games in hand on the first-place Vegas Golden Knights.

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They’re embracing the demanding, disciplined approach of coach Darryl Sutter, who guided this same organization to within a whisker of a Stanley Cup parade back in 2004 and later raised two championship banners in Los Angeles.

Yeah, there’s a long way to go. But there’s also a lot to be optimistic about, which hasn’t always been the February feeling around these parts.

In fact, Backlund mentioned earlier this week that he’s anxious to see what this squad can accomplish in the spring. The Flames didn’t even a playoff invite in 2020, when their inconsistency prompted a mid-season coaching change.

“We were excited to come back after the break and we were excited to get the second half going,” Backlund said. “We know how much the games mean now and how much every point means. It’s a tight race, a tight division. We know we have to stay on top of it, but the guys are all really excited for it because we all want to get back into the playoffs. I think we have a perfect team for playoffs. I feel like we have some experience and we have the depth and great goaltending. I think that will be big for us down the stretch here and hopefully when we enter playoffs.

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“It brings a lot of excitement to look at the standings every day and see you’re in a playoff spot. It gets you just more excited for every game,” he continued. “And if you’re excited, you’re going to play better. It’s a lot harder chasing. Just look at last year, we did it from Day 10 into the season and we had to chase the whole year and it’s really hard mentally. And if it’s hard mentally, it’s going to affect your body, as well. So being in a good spot here starting the second half, it’s exciting and it’s going to help us.

“I think if we keep going like this, we’re going to have a lot of success.”

Sutter will, of course, demand that the focus doesn’t stray from the here-and-now.

That, too, is important to instil the sort of culture and structure needed to ultimately be a tough out in a best-of-seven.

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“I’ve said this lots — you have to take it a game at a time,” Sutter stressed prior to Saturday’s matchup with the Islanders. “Every one of your games is different. Your opponent is different. You look at this homestand we’re on right now and every game, you have to play a different type of game. If you’re not prepared to play a different type of game, then you get down in series. It’s very simple. If you’re not thinking about more better, then you win one game in a series.”

On Sunday, for the Bengals and Rams, it’s all about winning one game.

So coach, who do you like in the Super Bowl?

“It’s a huge advantage to the Rams tomorrow, just because of the crowd,” Sutter analyzed, adding that he’s surprised the host team is only favoured by four points. “I’m kind of pulling for the underdog, but I thought it would be more.”

wgilbertson@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/WesGilbertson