Norris Trophy candidate Giordano placed on IR, sent back to Calgary

The heat is on the Flames.

Defenseman and Norris Trophy candidate Mark Giordano has been placed on injured reserve with an upper-body injury suffered on Feb. 25, the club announced Sunday.

Giordano has also been sent back to Calgary with four games remaining on the team's Eastern road trip, prompting a waiver claim on David Schlemko.

With 11 goals and 37 assists, Giordano sits in a tie for the team lead in points - while averaging 25:10 on the Flames blue line - and is level with P.K. Subban of the Montreal Canadiens for points by a defenseman. 

Losing Giordano for any length of time will no doubt hinder Calgary's already fading playoff chances.