Oilers Gameday – @ Blackhawks

The Edmonton Oilers conclude their four game road trip tonight in the windy city with their first meeting of the season with the defending Stanley Cup Champion Blackhawks. The two teams will meet up again on the 25th in Edmonton.

Last year, the two sides played mainly even, The Hawks won the first game in OT, while Edmonton stole the second game. The Hawks would win the third and final meeting, and the Oilers would finish 1-1-1 against the Hawks for the season. Every game, with the exception of the last, was pretty close.

The Oilers have played well recently against the Hawks, and have had some memorable blow-outs over the them, including Sam Gagner’s eight point night.

The Hawks have started out well once again this year, while Edmonton, as you know, is struggling big time. Tonight promises to be an interesting game for both sides.

Oilers forward Luke Gazdic was hurt yesterday in his fight with Jay Rosehill, and as a result Ryan Jones will draw into the lineup. Both teams are in the second half of back-to-backs.

Last Game:

Edmonton: The Oilers put forth a disheartening effort yesterday afternoon in Philadelphia against the Flyers. The Oilers were dominated in terms of offensive play, and really didn’t have any kind of urgency. The team struggled with defensive coverage and just didn’t look into the game.

Jay Rosehill and Scott Hartnell scored for Philly in the first, while David Perron scored for Edmonton in the second to make things close. Claude Giroux made it 3-1 late with his first of the season, but Taylor Hall would draw Edmonton within one.

The Flyers added a late Vinny Lecavalier goal to make things 4-2, which would end up being the final score of the game. For Edmonton, it was a poor effort that can’t happen if they expect to turn things around.

Chicago: The Hawks were in Dallas last night to take on former Oiler captain Shawn Horcoff and the Stars. Goalie Corey Crawford stopped 31 Stars shots on net, and helped back stop Chicago to a dominating 5-2 win.

Dallas opened the scoring with a goal from youngster Cody Eakin, but Chicago would respond ten minutes later with a Marian Hossa goal. Tyler Seguin once again gave Dallas a lead early in the second, but it would be the last time the Stars would light the lamp. Jonathan Toews would tie things up four minutes after Seguin scored, while Pat Kane would add a PP marker late to give the Hawks a 3-2 lead.

Hossa and defender Niklas Hjalmarsson would score in the third to seal the 5-2 win for the defending champs.

Last Meeting:

The Oilers and Hawks last met on April 24th at Rexall Place, in a game where the Hawks took a 4-1 decision to win the season series between the teams. Jonathan Toews opened the scoring 3:58 into the game, but it only last for a minute before Nail Yakupov hammered home a one-timer to tie things up at one.

Pat Kane scored 8:11 into the period to give Chicago a lead they would not lose. Johnny Oduya and Patrick Sharp would add goals in the third to put the game away, while Hawks goalies Ray Emery and Corey Crawford would combine to stop 21 of 22 Oilers shots. Devan Dubnyk would stop 26 in the losing effort.

Players To Watch:

Edmonton: Forward David Perron will play in his second game back in the lineup today. Perron struggled for the most part yesterday, but it was to be expected in his first game back. Today, the pressure starts getting back to Perron, who needs to produce for this team. The Oilers are in desperation mode, and need Perron to turn up the heat and play the game he played before getting hurt. Keep an eye on him this afternoon.

Chicago: Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane is a stud, but you already knew that. Keep an eye on him today, because he’s a special player and a guy that is just flat out fun to watch. Young, fast, skilled and knows how to play the game the right way. Kane is one of the best players in the game and Oilers fans should be thrilled just to watch him play.

Lines:

Edmonton Oilers Expected Lines:

David Perron – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Jordan Eberle

Taylor Hall – Sam Gagner – Ales Hemsky

Ryan Smyth – Mark Arcobello – Nail Yakupov

Jesse Joensuu – Boyd Gordon – Ryan Jones

Andrew Ference – Jeff Petry

Nick Schultz – Taylor Fedun

Anton Belov – Philip Larsen

Devan Dubnyk

Chicago Blackhawks Expected Lines:

Patrick Sharp – Jonathan Toews – Marian Hossa

Brandon Saad – Brandon Pirri – Patrick Kane

Bryan Bickell – Andrew Shaw – Sheldon Brookbank

Brandon Bollig – Marcus Krueger – Ben Smith

Duncan Keith – Brent Seabrook

Johnny Oduya – Niklas Hjalrmalsson

Nick Leddy – Michal Rozsival

Corey Crawford