Oilers Preseason Gameday – @ Cologne

After going 6-1-0 in the North American portion of their preseason slate, the Edmonton Oilers finish the exhibition season with an early morning affair in Germany. As part of the NHL’s Global Series, the Oilers will take on the Cologne Sharks at 8:00am mountain time. You can catch the game on Sportsnet in Canada and on NHL Network in the States.

The Oilers announced their 23 man roster yesterday, which includes PTO’s Jason Garrison and Alex Chiasson. Both players signed one-year, $650,000 deals late yesterday afternoon and earned jobs via strong preseason showings. They’ll both also add a strong veteran presence to the room.

Last Time Out:

Highlights

The Oilers didn’t play their best game on Saturday afternoon, but Cam Talbot bailed them out and the club won 4-3 anyways. Talbot looked sensational, stopping 39 shots and keeping his team in it long enough for the offense to wake up.

Kailer Yamamoto scored twice and likely cemented his current roster spot. For the second straight fall, the dynamic but small forward shone like a diamond and wrestled away a roster spot. His penchant for going to the net has impressed the Oilers coaching staff, and it was on display in this one.

Connor McDavid was flying around once again, but his line was overall quiet at even strength on the afternoon. Jujhar Khaira played a very solid game and looked a lot like the player that took Edmonton by storm a season ago.

Interestingly enough, I thought Jakub Jerabek had his best game of camp. He scored a goal and made some nice plays with the puck, but overall it wasn’t nearly enough. He was traded to St. Louis on Monday and went out with a whimper in Edmonton.

The Lines:

The Oilers placed Kris Russell on IR yesterday meaning he’ll miss today’s game and almost certainly Saturday’s opener. He’s eligible, and likely, to return prior to next Thursday’s game in Boston.

Edmonton Oilers Lines:

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Connor McDavid – Ty Rattie
Milan Lucic – Leon Draisaitl – Kailer Yamamoto
Tobias Rieder – Ryan Strome – Jesse Puljujarvi
Drak Caggiula – Kyle Brodziak – Zack Kassian

 Oscar Klefbom – Evan Bouchard
Darnell Nurse – Matt Benning
Jason Garrison – Ethan Bear

Cam Talbot

Guessing a bit on the forward lines and there has been no confirmation about Talbot. In fact, I wouldn’t be shocked if Koskinen actually got the nod for this one. Adam Larsson is out with injury, but is pushing to play on Saturday per Bob Stauffer.

Jujhar Khaira won’t play this morning in a bit of a surprising decision for the visitors from Alberta.

These forward lines, in my mind, are the most likely trios for opening afternoon in Sweden.

Cologne Sharks Lines:

No lines for the Sharks, but there are a number of players you will recognize. First off a cool tidbit, as Leon Draisaitl’s father Peter is the head coach for the Sharks and will go against his son for the first time in their careers.

Roster wise, a bunch of former NHL’ers dot this lineup. Defensively, former Buffalo Sabre Alex Sulzer leads the way for familiar faces alongside old friend Corey Potter and former Montreal prospect Morgan Ellis. Longtime Shark mainstay and Team Germany member Moritz Mueller is the leader on the back end.

Up front, former Oilers Ryan Jones and Steve Pinizzotto lead the way. Former Calgary prospect Ben Hanowski, part of the Iginla trade, will also suit up today along with former Flyer and Sabre Jason Akeson.

Enjoy the game and enjoy NHL opening night tonight!