The Edmonton Oilers are back at Rogers Place tonight to take on the Los Angeles Kings, and this one feels like it could get spicy without having to try too hard. These teams don’t just dislike each other, but they’ve built a real hatred over the last few years. Our boys keep knocking the Kings out of the playoffs, have done it four straight seasons, and it’s the kind of thing that sticks, and this is the first time they’ve seen each other since that Game 6 handshake line. Regular season or not, this one could be fun.

Isn’t it wild that we’re through the first half of the 2025-26 NHL season and the Oilers are only squaring off against L.A. for the first time? I think it is. Yet, at the same time, you’ve gotta love that this quirk in the schedule will have these two meeting up three times over the last few months of the season. And when you consider the history between these clubs and how tight the Pacific Division is looking, tonight’s matchup has the makings of an absolute beauty.

The Kings roll into town on the second half of a back-to-back after getting dusted 5-1 by the last-place Jets last night, which already adds an interesting layer. Tired legs, a frustrated group that’s spinning its wheels, and now a trip to a building to face the team that ended their season four years in a row. Edmonton, meanwhile, sits at 22-16-6, is riding a two-game win streak, and looking for their first three-game win streak of the season on their eighth attempt. So, this feels like a night where if the Oilers show up ready from Jump Street, they can get the Kings to unravel if things don’t go their way.

As we know from the four playoff series, L.A. is going to try and lock things down. The Kings want to grind games into the ground, control possession, and make everything feel tight, and the numbers back that up with L.A. sitting north of 52 percent in both Corsi and expected goals at five-on-five. The Oilers live closer to even in both of those areas, but where they separate themselves is on offence and game-breaking special teams. Edmonton is averaging 3.39 goals per game compared to the Kings’ 2.67, and if this turns into a special teams night, the advantage tilts even hard in our direction. The Oilers’ power play is clicking at a ridiculous 34.2 percent, while the Kings’ sits at 15.3, so the best thing that could happen for our side is for the Kings to lose control.

And then there’s Connor McDavid, who continues to turn every single opponent he faces into another slot on his personal highlight reel. He comes into Saturday’s game riding a career-high 17-game point streak with 18 goals and 23 assists for 41 points, which is just laugh-out-loud stupid. When McDavid is leaving a wake of destruction like this, game plans tend to last about five minutes before they fall apart. Looking for the longest point streak of his career, I’d bet all of Gregor’s money that No. 97 will come out flying and do everything he can to keep the heater going.

In goal, Connor Ingram gets the start for Edmonton, his sixth of the season, and it’s clear the organization is really trying to figure out what they have in him. Through his first five appearances, Ingram sports a 3.02 GAA and a .891 save percentage, which look average on paper, but that brutal start against Boston is doing most of the damage to his numbers. Four of his five starts have come with save percentages north of .900, and I don’t think I’m talking out of school when I say that a lot of Oilers fans are appreciating his calm in the crease. The Kings will test him, but if Ingram can give his teammates steady goaltending, the rest will take care of itself.

In a weird way, tonight’s game feels like the starting blocks for the playoff stretch drive. There’s playoff history, fatigue for L.A. after last night’s loss, and two teams that genuinely do not like each other. If the Oilers lean into the emotion without losing discipline, use home ice the way it’s supposed to be used, and let their skill do the talking, this has the makings of a really fun night at Rogers Place. Rivalries born in the playoffs don’t fade quietly, and I’d be shocked if this one stays calm for very long.

Let’s see what the numbers say…

Nugent-Hopkins – McDavid – Hyman
Podkolzin – Draisaitl – Kapanen
Howard – Roslovic – Savoie
Janmark – Lazar – Frederic

Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Emberson
Stastney – Regula

Ingram

Make it three straight games where Andrew Mangiapane is on the outside looking in, and the tough part about that decision is that the team looks better without him. While one can never be sure how long Kris Knoblauch will keep his lines together, the combinations listed above have looked pretty good in Edmonton’s last two wins. Outside of Ingram getting the start and Alec Regula coming back in for Riley Stillman, Knoblauch is keeping the group mostly the same.

Malott – Laferriere – Kempe
Foegele – Byfield – Ward
Fiala – Turcotte – Kuzmenko
Lee – Helenius

Anderson – Doughty
Edmundson – Clarke
Dumoulin – Ceci
Moverare

Forsberg

You’d have to think the Kings will come into today’s game with a chip on their shoulder, given that they’re the ones who finally ended the Jets’ 11-game losing streak last night in Winnipeg. The Kings are two games under .500 over their last 10, and last night’s loss was the kind of result that could shake the team awake if the Oilers aren’t careful. We know the Kings have players who can score, but right now, those guys aren’t doing nearly enough of it. Ideally, the Oilers will let sleeping dogs lie.

Game Day Prediction: Oilers finally get their first three-game win streak of the season thanks to a decisive 5-2 win.

Obvious Game Day Prediction: Connor McDavid extends his point streak to 18 games with yet another face-melting goal that will have you flying off your couch.

Not-So-Obvious Game Day Prediction: It’s been a few weeks since I’ve tried this, so I’m going back to Spencer Stastney scoring his first goal as an Oiler.