Boston went ahead and made two moves for a playoff push at Monday's trade deadline, though the group it had wasn't having too difficult of a time picking up points against its next opponent.
The Bruins haven't lost a regulation game to Calgary since 2008-09, a streak they'll try to extend Tuesday night in Boston while furthering the Flames' crippling overall skid.
The Bruins (34-23-6) acquired forward Lee Stempniak from New Jersey in exchange for a fourth-round draft pick in 2016 and a second-round draft pick in 2017. They also acquired defenseman John-Michael Liles from Carolina for a third-round draft pick in 2016, a fifth-round pick in 2017 and Anthony Camara.
In 63 games, Stempniak has 16 goals and 41 points. Liles has six goals and 15 points in 64 games.
Both are expected to be available Tuesday.
"Lee's versatility, the type of year he's having, I think will complement our group very well. He can play in a bunch of different positions for us," general manager Don Sweeney said. "And John-Michael Liles is another player that brings a lot of versatility to our group."
The Bruins are playing their second of a four-game homestand, and they'll probably appreciate the new bodies more with Chicago and Washington following the Flames in. Boston's coming off Sunday's 4-1 loss to Tampa Bay - a hiccup after taking a 1-0 lead that followed consecutive wins by a 9-2 total.
Many of the problems it has had over a 2-2-0 span have been special-teams related with the Bruins going 0 for 9 on the power play and 5 for 10 on the penalty kill with two power-play goals allowed against the Lightning.
Tuukka Rask was in goal and has a .938 save percentage over a 4-2-0 span. He's 3-0-3 with a .937 save percentage against Calgary.
The Flames (26-32-4) have won the three meetings since the start of last season - including a 5-4 overtime victory in Calgary on Dec. 4 - but the Bruins have emerged from each with a point as part of a 5-0-3 span in the series with 3.87 goals per game.
Before Monday's 5-3 loss in Philadelphia, the Flames acquired goaltender Niklas Backstrom and a sixth-round draft pick from Minnesota for right wing David Jones. The move comes after Karri Ramo was lost for the season in mid-February. The Flames also sent defenseman Kris Russell to Dallas for defenseman Jyrki Jokipakka, forward prospect Brett Pollock and a conditional 2016 second-round pick.
The defeat started a four-game East Coast swing and extended their losing streak to a season-worst five games.
Sean Monahan has scored in three of the last four games, which have all been regulation losses, while Johnny Gaudreau has 12 points on an eight-game point streak. But Calgary has wasted almost all of it with an average of 4.11 goals allowed over a 1-7-1 span, and its penalty kill has been hideous for even longer with a 61.3 percent rate (27 of 44) over the last 11 games.
"It's a tough day," captain Mark Giordano told the team's official website. "You try to go through your routine as much as possible. You sort of always have one ear opened and you're listening to what's going on. Our will was there, our compete was there."
Jonas Hiller could be in goal for both games on the back-to-back having gone 1-4-0 with a 4.32 goals-against average and .860 save percentage spanning six games. He's 5-1-1 with 1.89 and .938 marks in eight against Boston.
