This is game three of a five-game road trip for the Edmonton Oilers tonight as they’ll meet the always formidable Vegas Golden Knights at home. The Oilers started the roadie off with a gorgeous victory over the San Jose Sharks but gave all the momentum away to the Western Conference’s basement dwellers, the LA Kings, in game two.
Tonight will be the first match of a back-to-back. Edmonton will face the white-hot Arizona Coyotes tomorrow and usually, I’d advise the fans to brace themselves for a scheduled loss, but Arizona will also be playing back-to-backs this weekend. Tonight they’re in LA, but even if the Oilers get the Coyotes’ backup, I can’t remember the last time they took advantage of such a situation.
Getting back to tonight’s matchup, it’s vital that the Oilers big boys are firing on all cylinders. Leon Draisaitl took full accountability for a poor game against the Kings and if he doesn’t bounce back with a god-like performance, how much will his word be worth in the future?
Gerrard Gallant’s roster has some real old school players on it and it’s near a guarantee that they’ll be playing big boy hockey tonight. William Carrier, Ryan Reaves, Derek Engelland, and Brayden McNabb will need to be kept in check else the Oilers will be limping into Arizona tomorrow. Do the Oilers have the pieces to counter this sort of game plan? They have a few, but I’ll be curious how the likes of Ethan Bear and Caleb Jones react when Vegas starts piling on the forecheck.
Speed vs. Grit…
https://twitter.com/TheOilKnight/status/1197759490596188160
The Next Ten Games Part Three
The first ten games of the 2019/20 season went quite well for the Oilers, more so at the start than the end, mind you. The second ten games were equal to the first ten and it saw the team get a bit better from an analytical point-of-view. Now, the third installment might be the most important as we’ll pass American Thanksgiving (11/28) in this block. I think it was Elliotte Friedman that said 78% of teams who are in a playoff spot by this holiday tend to stay in that spot. I say the Oilers finish this segment of ten games with twelve points out of a possible twenty.
11/14 Colorado (11-5-2) (h): I like the Oilers’ chances against a third-string backup. Won’t be easy though. (WIN) WIN
11/16 Dallas (9-8-2) (h): The Stars are 8-1-1 in their last ten here and I don’t see Edmonton slowing them down. (LOSS) LOSS
11/19 San Jose (8-10-1) (a): Embarrassed from the spankings the Sharks have been giving them since last season, I think the Oilers bounce back here. (WIN) WIN
11/21 Los Angeles (6-11-1) (a): The Kings don’t scare me. Easy points for the Oilers. (WIN) LOSS
11/23 Vegas (9-8-3) (a): The Golden Knights are a dangerous squad and this game could go either way. I’ll take Vegas here as their home advantage is massive. (LOSS)
11/24 Arizona (11-6-2) (a): Having already lost twice to the Coyotes, Edmonton will find a way to secure the two points here. (WIN)
11/27 Colorado (11-5-2) (a): I reckon by this time, the Avs will be healthier and that much more dangerous. (LOSS)
11/30 Vancouver (10-6-3) (h): The first game of a B2B with the Canucks on a Saturday night and on the eve of Jesse Puljujarvi’s signing deadline. I’ll take the distraction-free Canucks. (LOSS)
12/1 Vancouver (10-6-3) (a): Revenge is a dish best served ice cold… (WIN)
12/4 Ottawa (7-10-1) (h): Much like the Kings, the Senators don’t have a lot going for them. (WIN)
Records as of Nov.14th, 2019.
Three Players to Watch for the Golden Knights
- #61 Mark Stone – Three points in his last ten games on Vegas’ 2nd line. I know he’s capable of much better as he’s one of the best two-way wingers in the entire NHL.
- #9 Cody Glass – Some had Glass as a favorite for the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year before the season started. He IS the Golden Knights’ best prospect, no doubt about that. He spent four years ripping up the WHL playing for the Portland Winterhawks and it won’t be long before he’s doing the same in the NHL. He’s got all the tools to be an excellent no.2 center at this level and Vegas is doing a fine job by starting him out on the third line with Paul Stastny and Alex Tuch. Glass has some outstanding mentors to learn from. 40pts isn’t out of reach for this young man.
- #89 Alex Tuch – Two points on the season to date. It’s safe to say things aren’t going according to plan for the big American winger. Coming off of a 52pt campaign, Tuch is sure to break out sooner than later. He’s a much better player than the numbers are indicating.
Here are Vegas’ projected lines for this evening courtesy of the Edmonton Sun.
Max Pacioretty-William Karlsson-Rielly Smith
Jonathan Marchessault-Cody Eakin-Mark Stone
Alex Tuch-Paul Stastny-Cody Glass
William Carrier-Tomas Nosek-Ryan Reaves
Brayden McNabb-Nate Schmidt
Nik Hague-Shea Theodore
Jon Merrill-Deryk Engelland
Marc-Andre Fleury
Malcolm Subban
Three Players to Watch for the Oilers
- #6 Adam Larsson – His first game back after breaking his leg blocking a shot probably didn’t go as he hoped it would. Tonight there’ll be some tough hombres out there and the Oilers will need his take no prisoners attitude.
- #10 Joakim Nygard – Probably Edmonton’s best player (if they had one) against LA. He had three really great chances to score but couldn’t capitalize which is unfortunate, but it also means he’s going to the right places. So there’s some promise and potential with this fella.
- #29 Leon Draisaitl – As I said above, when you come out and take accountability like he did the other night in LA, it’s imperative that in the next game he’s the best player on the ice for both teams or there could be dire consequences as a result.
These are Edmonton’s projected lines. Things could change so don’t bet your house on this roster being iced tonight. I wonder if Tippett goes back to Smith and also if Nygard gets a push up into the top-six?…
Leon Draisaitl-Connor McDavid-Zack Kassian
Jujhar Khaira-Ryan Nugent-Hopkins-James Neal
Joakim Nygard-Riley Sheahan-Josh Archibald
Markus Granlund-Gaetan Haas-Alex Chiasson
Darnell Nurse-Ethan Bear
Oscar Klefbom-Caleb Jones
Kris Russell-Adam Larsson
Mikko Koskinen
Mike Smith
