The Edmonton Oilers started out like bats out of hell under Ken Hitchcock, going 9-2-2 in their first 13 games with the wise one as the head coach. Since then? The Oil are 0-2-0 and looked very poor in both games. Lackluster losses in Vancouver and at home against St. Louis have the boys in orange in a tough spot heading into tonight’s game.
Oscar Klefbom and Kris Russell are both still out, while the best team in hockey will be opposite of them tonight. It’s not going to be easy at all, but this is a game the Oil badly need heading into the Christmas break.
Mikko Koskinen will put his perfect Rogers Place record on the line tonight for the Oil, while the elite Andrei Vasilevskiy gets the nod for Tampa.
Keys to The Game:
Edmonton: The Oilers have to transition the puck better tonight or they will get murdered. It’s easier said than done without Klefbom in the lineup, but the Oil have to find a way or else the Bolts will hem them in and pound away on Koskinen.
Tampa Bay: Show up. This isn’t even a shot at the Oilers, Tampa is simply far and away the best team in hockey. If they show up and play their game, there isn’t anyone that can stop them. I truly believe that. Against a banged up Oilers team, if they come in and take care of business they’ll sweep the season series.
Players to Watch:
Edmonton: With three days between games and with the best team in the game against him, you just know Connor McDavid is going to come out swinging and put on a show tonight. Just sit back and watch the fireworks, baby. I don’t need to remind you of last year, do I?
Tampa Bay: He doesn’t get talked about like Steven Stamkos or Nikita Kucherov, but Brayden Point has had that kind of impact for the Bolts this season. He might be the most underrated player in hockey right now and has been finding ways to impact almost every game he plays in. Keep a close eye on him.
The Lines:
Jujhar Khaira begins serving a two-game suspension tonight that will keep him out until December 29th when the Sharks come to town. Ryan Spooner draws back in, while Valentin Zykov and Chris Wideman sit as healthy scratches. Klefbom and Russell are still on IR, while the top-six forward group was shuffled in practice on Thursday.
Edmonton Oilers Lines:
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Connor McDavid – Jesse Puljujarvi
Tobias Rieder – Leon Draisaitl – Alex Chiasson
Drake Caggiula – Kyle Brodziak – Zack Kassian
Milan Lucic – Ryan Spooner – Ty Rattie
Darnell Nurse – Adam Larsson
Kevin Gravel – Caleb Jones
Jason Garrison – Matt Benning
Mikko Koskinen
The Bolts, at least as of this writing, aren’t expected to have youngster Mathieu Joseph in the lineup. You might remember him as the young man that caught Milan Lucic’s attention back in November. Danick Martel, who didn’t play in November, will draw in up front.
Tampa Bay Lightning Lines:
J.T. Miller – Steven Stamkos – Tyler Johnson
Ondrej Palat – Brayden Point – Nikita Kucherov
Alex Killorn – Anthony Cirelli – Yanni Gourde
Adam Erne – Cedric Paquette – Danick Martel
Victor Hedman – Anton Stralman
Ryan McDonagh – Erik Cernak
Braydon Coburn – Dan Girardi
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Game Notes:
The Oilers have actually had success against the Bolts at Rogers Place. For all their trouble in the sunshine state, Edmonton has won six of their last seven home dates with the Bolts. That includes a 6-2 victory last season that was tied for Tampa’s largest defeat of the season.
The Bolts are hot right now, going 10-0-1 in their last eleven games. That point streak, according to the club, is tied for the third-longest in franchise history (2013-14). The longest such streak was an 18 game stretch (14-0-4) in 2003-04. You all know what happened at the end of that season (Sup, Calgary).
It’s never too early to look at the standings. A victory tonight would ensure that the Oilers celebrate Christmas in a playoff spot for the second time in three years. The other time, 2016-17, led to a playoff berth and 100 point season. If you’re in when Santa comes, it is usually a good omen moving forward.
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