The Edmonton Oilers’ final countdown before the 4-Nations Face-Off break begins tonight as they kick off a two-game road trip.
Before they stop in Chicago to visit Connor Bedard’s Blackhawks, the Oilers will swing through St. Louis tonight to see the Blues.
It marks the second time the two teams have met this year with the first meeting coming in early December when Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg made their returns to Edmonton for the first time since they signed offer sheets. The Oilers won that game 4-2 off the back of multi-point efforts from Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid.
Edmonton will look for another big night from the Dynamic Duo, who will skate together on the top line, flanked by Corey Perry for the second straight game. The trio were together Saturday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs, playing 9:49 together at five-on-five and they were dominant, controlling 73.1 percent of the shot attempt share, 64.3 percent of the expected goal share and 70 percent of the scoring chance share, all the while outscoring Toronto 1-0.
Edmonton’s lines will see some other movement, too. Viktor Arvidsson, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman will be the Oilers second line, while Jeff Skinner, Adam Henrique and Kasperi Kapanen will form the third.
On the fourth line, Mattias Janmark will centre Connor Brown and Vasily Podkolzin, the latter of whom has seen his spot on the depth chart fall. While the Russian had a strong start to the season, he’s hit somewhat of a slump over his last five games, going pointless and taking just seven shots on 10 attempts. The demotion will offer somewhat of a reset for the 23-year-old, who has still had an overwhelmingly positive impact on the team this season.
Mattias Ekholm is expected to return to the Oilers lineup after missing Saturday’s game due to illness, returning to his usual spot alongside Evan Bouchard on the top pairing. Darnell Nurse and John Klingberg will form the second pair, while Brett Kulak and Ty Emberson will be the Oilers’ third pair.
St. Louis enters tonight fresh off a win against the Utah Hockey Club, breaking a four-game losing streak in which they fell to the Vegas Golden Knights, Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks and Colorado Avalanche. Despite the win, they’ve still been outscored 17-6 over this recent stretch as their offence has dried up.
The Blues have mixed up their lines, bringing Jordan Kyrou to the top line alongside Robert Thomas and Pavel Buchnevich, and putting Alexandre Texier on the second line with Brayden Schenn and Dylan Holloway.
LINE COMBINATIONS
Oilers
Draisaitl – McDavid – Perry
Arvidsson – RNH – Hyman
Skinner – Henrique – Kapanen
Podkolzin – Janmark – Brown
Arvidsson – RNH – Hyman
Skinner – Henrique – Kapanen
Podkolzin – Janmark – Brown
Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Klingberg
Kulak – Emberson
Nurse – Klingberg
Kulak – Emberson
Skinner (Unconfirmed)
Blues
Buchnevich – Thomas – Kyrou
Holloway – Schenn – Texier
Neighbours – Sundqvist – Bolduc
Toropchenko – Faksa – Walker
Holloway – Schenn – Texier
Neighbours – Sundqvist – Bolduc
Toropchenko – Faksa – Walker
Fowler – Parayko
Broberg – Faulk
Suter – Leddy
Broberg – Faulk
Suter – Leddy
Binnington
TONIGHT…
Tom Kostiuk from Handmade by Tom
GAME DAY PREDICTION: The Dynamic Duo dominates again, scoring two goals between them in a 5-2 win.
OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: One of Dylan Holloway or Philip Broberg score a goal tonight. Ex-Oilers love to play against the Oilers.
NOT-SO-OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Speaking of revenge goals, Kasperi Kapanen gets one, too. He had two shots in the first meeting between these two teams, but couldn’t break through. That changes tonight.
