G72 Game Notes: Edmonton Oilers seek season series sweep over Anaheim Ducks

Following Thursday’s 4-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings, the Edmonton Oilers will wrap up their quick two-game homestand with a Saturday matinee against the Anaheim Ducks.

1. The Oilers have absolutely dominated the head-to-head with Anaheim over the past few years. Since the shortened 2021 season when the two teams didn’t face one another, Edmonton has gone 9-1 against the Ducks and they’ve outscored Anaheim 57 to 15 in the process.

A win on Saturday would clinch Edmonton’s second season sweep over Anaheim in three years. The Ducks’ only win over the Oilers during that span came in December of 2022 when Anaheim managed a 4-3 victory in Edmonton despite being outshot 49 to 17.

2. Two of Edmonton’s three wins over the Ducks in 2023-24 have been lopsided while the most recent meeting was competitive. The Oilers hammered the Ducks 8-2 at home in November and then beat them 7-2 in Anaheim on New Year’s Eve.

The most recent game between the Oilers and Ducks was in February, a few days after the Vegas Golden Knights snapped Edmonton’s 16-game winning streak. The Ducks had a 3-2 lead early in the third period but the Oilers battled back with three unanswered goals to edge out a 5-3 win.

3. Saturday’s game will mark the first time that Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick will face their former team since being traded from Anaheim to Edmonton back on March 6. Carrick didn’t suit up in Edmonton’s games against the Winnipeg Jets or L.A. Kings earlier this week but was the fourth-line centre during the team’s practice on Friday.

Since the trade deadline, the Oilers have gone 6-3-2 with a mixed bag of results. They suffered frustrating losses to the Columbus Blue Jackets and Buffalo Sabres and then hammered the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals. They dropped back-to-back games in Toronto and Ottawa but bounced back with solid wins over the Jets and Kings.

The Ducks, meanwhile, have gone into tank mode since selling ahead of the deadline. They have just two wins in their last 12 games (which came over the Senators and Blackhawks) and they have a 24-45-4 record on the season, good for third-last in the league.

4. We could realistically see Connor McDavid become the fourth player ever to record 100 assists in a single season on Saturday afternoon. With two assists in Edmonton’s win over the Kings, McDavid is now at 95 on the season, certainly within striking distance of the illustrious 100 mark. Across three games against the Ducks this season, McDavid has one goal and eight assists.

The only three players to record 100 assists in a single season are Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Bobby Orr. Gretzky did so 11 times, while Lemieux and Orr each did so once, in 1988-89 and 1970-71, respectively. Adam Oates came close with 97 in 1992-93, and Joe Thornton had 96 assists in 2005-06.

5. The Oilers have a 44-23-4 record and are six points back of the Vancouver Canucks for the top spot in the Pacific Division with two games in hand. The Canucks have dropped back-to-back games but will be facing the Ducks in Vancouver on Sunday following the game in Edmonton.