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Next Game: Oilers @ Golden Knights, T-Mobile Arena, Tonight, 8 p.m.
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Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill makes a save against Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid as defenceman Alec Martinez and Alex Pietrangelo defend in the third period of their game at T-Mobile Arena on Feb. 6, 2024 in Las Vegas. Ethan Miller/Getty Images. |
Game Day: Oilers (13-9-2) @ Golden Knights (15-7-3)
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• Oilers forward Zach Hyman took part in the morning skate in Vegas, but head coach Kris Knoblauch confirmed Hyman won't play tonight, according to Sportsnet's Gene Principe
• Kasperi Kapanen scored his first goal with the Edmonton Oilers in Saturday's 4-1 win over Colorado
• Defenceman Brett Kulak scored his fifth goal of the season in the Oilers 4-1 win over Colorado. He's only one off his career-high of six, set in 2018-19 when he was a member of the Montreal Canadiens
•Vegas Golden Knights forward Mark Stone is back practising with the team, but he isn't expected to be in the lineup against the Oilers
Edmonton Oilers lineup
Nugent-Hopkins – McDavid – Kapanen
Podkolzin – Draisaitl – Brown
Skinner – Henrique – Janmark
Caggiula – Ryan – Perry
Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Stecher
Kulak – Emberson Skinner
Pickard
Vegas Golden Knights lineup
Barbashev – Eichel – Dorofeyev
Hertl – Roy – Kolesar Howden – Karlsson – Olofsson Pearson – Schwindt – Holtz McNabb – Theodore Hanifin – Pietrangelo Hague – Korczak
Hill
Samsonov
By the numbers
Edmonton Oilers
Power Play — 17.7% (23rd)
Penalty Kill — 72.1% (28th)
Faceoffs — 53.9% (3rd)
Goals For avg — 3.0 (17th)
Goals Against avg — 3.04 (T14th)
Vegas Golden Knights
Power Play — 27.4% (7th)
Penalty Kill — 78.2% (21st)
Faceoffs — 51.8% (11th)
Goals For avg — 3.6 (7th)
Goals Against avg — 3.12 (T18th) |
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WATCH: Oilers forward Connor McDavid speaks to the media after the team's practice in Vegas on Monday
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8 OILERS THINGS: CAN THEY HANDLE VEGAS? BOUCHARD FOR TEAM CANADA? NEW GUY PROBLEMS |
Things are starting to heat up.
The Edmonton Oilers are on a roll, the 4 Nations Face-Off rosters are about to be announced and the most revealing test of the season is up next on the schedule.
With the heart of the NHL season upon us, here are eight things to think about: Vegas is a first place team that’s running hot, 6-3-1 in the last 10, and are viewing Tuesday’s game the same way the Oilers are — a measuring stick between a pair of heavyweight contenders who plan on emerging from the Pacific Division playoffs.
Edmonton is the second hottest team in the NHL right now behind 8-2-0 Toronto but their record against winning teams hasn’t been great.
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GAME DAY: EDMONTON OILERS IN A CLASH OF HEAVIES AGAINST VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
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Just past the one-quarter mark on the season and we’re finally finding out who’s who in the Pacific Division, for real.
This one’s between a couple of big swingers looking to make their mark and keep on a roll, with the Oilers having gone 7-2-1 in their last 10 games to sit as the second-hottest team in the NHL right now, behind the 8-2 Toronto Maple Leafs. Vegas, meanwhile, leads the division after having gone on a run of 6-3-1.
After a bitterly disappointing start to the season, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins might have found a little momentum with a goal in each of the past two games. That doubled his productivity from the first 22 games, as he moves into fourth in team scoring with 12 points. That puts him on pace for 41 points this year, down from 67 last year and a career-high 104 the previous season. |
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Edmonton Oilers 2024-25 statistics
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Leon Draisaitl: 24 GP, 17G, 15 A, 32 PTS Connor McDavid: 21 GP, 12G, 19 A, 31 PTS Ryan Nugent-Hopkins: 24 GP, 4 G, 8 A, 12 PTS - Mattias Janmark: 24 GP, 1G, 9 A, 10 PTS
- Zach Hyman: 20 GP, 3 G, 5 A, 8 PTS
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| Evan Bouchard: 24 GP, 6 G, 12 A, 18 PTS
Mattias Ekholm: 24 GP, 2G, 8A, 10 PTS Darnell Nurse: 21 GP, 3 G, 7 A, 9 PTS Brett Kulak: 24 GP, 5G, 4 A, 9 PTS
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| - Stuart Skinner: 16 GP, 8-6-2, .887 SV%, 3.09 GAA
- Calvin Pickard: 9 GP, 5-3--0, 0.895 SV%, 2.50 GAA
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Edmonton Oilers forward Jeff Skinner battles the Vancouver Canucks' forward Jonathan Lekkerimaki during second period NHL action at Rogers Place, in Edmonton. David Bloom /Postmedia |
Edmonton Oilers newcomer can't catch a break on ice, gets clobbered by NHL |
By David Staples
When will Jeff Skinner’s luck change? Not today.
Today the struggling newcomer to the Edmonton Oilers got fined $2000 for the NHL diving/embellishment.
Said the NHL Hockey Ops: “NHL Rule 64 is designed to bring attention to and more seriously penalize players (and teams) who repeatedly dive and embellish in an attempt to draw penalties.”
Skinner was penalized for diving against Carolina on Oct. 22, then a month later against the New York Rangers on Nov. 23.
1. These are hard times for proven NHL scorer Skinner, and the ignominy of this fine doesn’t help. As Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal noted, “This isn’t the kind of publicity an NHL player really wants.”
2. Skinner had a solid week or two early in the season, and earned some praise in Oil Country. Fans liked his nose for the net and deft hands. He had four points in his first five games, but just four points in his next 19.
3. Skinner was brought in to be a first or second line winger, but he’s played just 45 of his 306 even strength minutes with McDavid and just 60 minutes with Leon Draisaitl. His problem is that the Oil have scored just once and been scored on ten times (TEN TIMES!) when he’s been on the ice with the two ace attackers. Something isn’t working and part of it is Skinner’s lack of defensive prowess.
4. Skinner has made by far the highest rate of mistakes of any Oilers wingers on Grade A shots against, 1.32 per 15 minutes of ES time. By comparison, tough checking Mattias Janmark is at just 0.54 per 15. The next highest on the team for wingers after Skinner are Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, 1.14 per 15, and Vasili Podkolzin, 1.03 per 15. |
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▶️ The Cult of Hockey's "Embattled Oiler leads Edmonton over Avs" podcast |
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