“One thing, we lost our last game. So this one becomes more important for us to make sure we get back on track,” said head coach Ryan Huska. “But it’s also like a rivalry game. You always want to play your best against your rivals, and you find yourself in a situation where they are on a very good streak. So we have the opportunity to play our best game against them (tonight).

Indeed, the Flames’ No. 1 priority is rebounding after suffering its first regulation defeat of the campaign, 4-2, at the hands of the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday.

The Flames took over in the second half of the game and gave their Eastern counterparts all they could handle, but a “15-minute gap,” according to Nazem Kadri, was enough to cost them.

Jake Bean’s first as a Flame and Jonathan Huberdeau’s fourth of the year provided the offense for the Flames, who were buoyed by Dan Vladar and his marvelous 39 save effort.

One thing is clear:

If the Flames take control of the game, the same way they tilted the ice in the final 30 minutes on Thursday, they could be the ones to hand the Jets their first loss of the season.

“They don’t give up much and when they do, they have a really good goalie there,” Ryan Lomberg said. “For us, we’re going to have to play a full 60 minutes, play the right way and just not have too many, because they’re not giving up much.

“It’s going to be a bit like a playoff game. There won’t be much ice there and you’ll have to make it work.

“It’s a good challenge for us and we have to be ready to take it on.”