Oilers Gameday – Vs. Flames

The Oilers, coming off a rather uninspiring effort Thursday night, host the Calgary Flames in the Battle Of Alberta round four, and the middle game of a three game home-stand. Edmonton sits four points behind the Flames in the standings, and have collected five of a possible six points against their rivals this season.

Edmonton enters tonight still showcasing many players for Wednesday deadline. Ales Hemsky moves up to the top-line with Taylor Hall and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and could be playing his final game as an Oiler. Nail Yakupov, who took a shot off the foot Thursday night, will not play tonight, although the injury isn’t severe. Ben Scrivens gets the night off, while Anton Belov takes a seat after a rough ride Thursday. Mark Fraser takes his spot in the lineup.

Calgary, like Edmonton, comes into this game showcasing some talent. The Flames could move forwards Lee Stempniak and Mike Cammalleri by Wednesday, with other veterans like Mark Giordano and Dennis Wideman being possible trade bait as well. The Flames are coming off a tough loss to LA on Thursday night, and are expecting a relatively healthy lineup this evening.

The Oilers turn to goalie Ilya Bryzgalov for his first post-Olympic start, while the Flames will go with Reto Berra.

Last Games:

Edmonton: On Thursday, Edmonton came out of the Olympic break with a date against the Minnesota Wild, but things did not go according to plan. The sides were even on the shot clock with six a piece through twenty, but the Wild would score the lone goal just 2:04 in as Zach Parise found a wide open Mikael Grandlund during four-on-four action.

The second period saw Minnesota start to take control of things, getting the better of the chances. Both Sam Gagner and Ales Hemsky were a little lazy coming back on a play that saw Stephane Veilleux find a spot in the slot and blast home his second on the season.

In the third, Edmonton would start their usual late push, but would quickly see the nail get put in the coffin. Dany Heatley banged home a rebound 9:29 in that basically ended things. Wild goalie Darcy Kuemper would stop 21 shots for his second shut-out, leading the Wild to a 3-0 win.

Calgary: The Flames returned from the Olympic break on Thursday night as well, battling the LA Kings in what was a closely contested game. The Kings got things going exactly three minutes in, as Dustin Brown backhanded one past Joni Ortio, who was making his first NHL start.

The second period saw Calgary put a lot of pressure on the Kings, out-shooting them by a 15-8 margin. That said, Jon Quick stopped all 15 Flames shots, keeping the Kings out in front, while Ortio stopped all eight LA shots to keep the Flames within striking distance.

The third period was one of the ugliest for Calgary all season. The Kings smelt blood, and dominated Calgary by out-shooting them 11-2. Ortio put up a valiant effort, but LA got their insurance 3:30 into the frame, as Dwight King fired home his 12th goal of the season.

Quick would stop both Flames shots in the third, posting a 25 save shut-out and backing the Kings to a 2-0 victory.

Last Meeting:

The Oilers and Flames last met up on December 27th in Calgary. Calgary scored what they thought was the game’s first goal early on, but had it called off due to a tip-in with a high stick. Devan Dubnyk would stop the ten Flames shots that counted, while Ryan Smyth would deflect an Ales Hemsky pass into the net at the 17:22 mark.

Calgary came out guns blazing in the second period, but could not solve Dubnyk, who would stop all eight Flames shots. Edmonton would get some pressure late, but things remained 1-0 after two.

Calgary played a good third period, but Edmonton smelt blood and applied the pressure on Reto Berra, firing 12 shots his way. The Oilers ended up getting their insurance with six seconds left as Ryan Smyth would score an empty net goal on the power-play, sealing Edmonton’s win. Devan Dubnyk would stop all 27 shots for his last shut-out as an Oiler, giving the team a 2-0 win.

Players To Watch:

Edmonton: Oilers forward Taylor Hall has had a lot of success against certain teams in his career, and the Calgary Flames are one of those teams. Hall has lit up the Oilers rival since his debut in 2010, and I suspect it continues tonight. The Oilers need a response after a lackluster effort on Thursday, and I beleive their top gun will lead the way.

Calgary: Flames forward Mike Cammalleri has had some success against Edmonton before, and is currently playing in a showcase role to go to a contender on Wednesday. Put all those factors together, and you have the recipe for a good night for the Flames sniper. I’d keep an eye on Cammalleri in what could be his final game as a Flame.

The Lines:

Edmonton Oilers Lines:

Taylor Hall – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Ales Hemsky

David Perron – Sam Gagner – Jordan Eberle

Matt Hendricks – Boyd Gordon – Jesse Joensuu

Luke Gazdic – Ryan Smyth – Ryan Jones

Nick Schultz – Justin Schultz

Martin Marincin – Jeff Petry

Andrew Ference – Mark Fraser

Ilya Bryzgalov

Calgary Flames Lines:

T.J. Galiardi – Mikael Backlund – Jiri Hudler

Mike Cammalleri – Sean Monahan – Joe Colborne

Lance Bouma – Matt Stajan – David Jones

Paul Byron – Markus Grandlund – Kevin Westgarth

Mark Giordano – T.J. Brodie

Kris Russell – Chris Butler

Ladislav Smid – Dennis Wideman

Reto Berra