Phillips getting another shot with big club

Matthew Phillips looks up to Johnny Gaudreau in a couple ways.

Metaphorically, Phillips considers him an idol, an inspiration.

Physically, too — not many professional pucksters have to glance upward, even slightly, to look Gaudreau square in the eyes.

Just how small is Phillips, the minor-league scoring whiz who was recalled this week by the Calgary Flames? Even smaller than Gaudreau, who most would consider to be the NHL'S mightiest mite.

Phillips is listed at 5-foot-8 and just 160 pounds, and that's presumably with a few pucks stuffed in his pockets before he stepped on the scale.

Yet fans are so fascinated by his potential that his call-up arguably overshadowed Friday's obvious story angle — that Gaudreau was facing his former Flames teammates for the first time since bolting for the Columbus Blue Jackets as an unrestricted free agent.

“That's awesome for him,” Gaudreau said after Friday's morning skate at Nationwide Arena, his new home rink. “I remember seeing him at camp all the time. He's a great kid and a really smart and talented player, and I hear he's having a great year in the American League.”

You can't help but root for Phillips.

Darryl Sutter said as much, though you can tell the Flames coach is not necessarily convinced that the AHL'S reigning player of the month can thrive at the highest level.

“He's an awesome kid, he has an awesome skill set and he's a really good competitor,” Sutter said of the 24-year-old right-winger. “The next part is the size. That's clear.”

It's no secret Sutter prefers for his depth dudes to play a hard and heavy brand. That's why some were surprised that Phillips, appearing Friday in his second NHL game, was pegged to skate alongside Milan Lucic and Trevor Lewis on the fourth unit. There was grousing on social media that Sutter wasn't putting the Calgary-raised callup in a position to succeed, that he needed to be cast in a top-nine slot instead.

“He's not ahead of any of those guys in top-nine roles,” Sutter said. “So that's a stretch.”

Phillips has been among the hottest topics in Calgary the past few weeks, with a steady outcry that he deserves to be on the big-league roster, having piled up 15 goals and 30 points in 20 games with the AHL'S Wranglers.

“Just continue to have the confidence that I've been playing with (in the AHL), have belief in myself and do what got me here,” said Phillips.