All 32 teams will be in action on Tuesday, including the Oilers, who aim to bounce back from a 4-1 loss to Dallas as they return home to face the Hurricanes at Rogers Place. Edmonton is a -130 moneyline favourite.
Oilers vs. Hurricanes Odds
- Edmonton Oilers Moneyline: –130
- Carolina Hurricanes Moneyline: +110
- Puck Line: Oilers -1.5 (+180), Hurricanes +1.5 (-225)
- Game Total: 6.5 (Over +100, Under -120)
Odds courtesy of Sports Interaction.
Matchup
Edmonton holds a 31-14-4 home record against Eastern Conference teams over the past three seasons, while Carolina is 26-18-5 on the road against the West. The Oilers have split the last two season series, winning both home games (6-1 in Dec. 2023 and 6-4 in Oct. 2022), but the Hurricanes are 10-6 against Edmonton in the Connor McDavid era and have gone 7-3 straight up in the last 10 meetings.
Check out Daily Faceoff to get updates regarding the line combinations and goaltenders for Tuesday’s game.
Handicapping the Hurricanes (2-2 SU, 2-2 ATS, 1-2-1 O/U)
Carolina continues its six-game road trip which started with a 4-1 win in Pittsburgh on Friday, but the Hurricanes fell 4-3 to the Blues in St. Louis on Saturday. However, Carolina has had two days off and starting goaltender Frederik Andersen hasn’t played since posting a .962 save percentage against the Penguins. Of course, it was another dominant team performance from the Hurricanes.
The Hurricanes have picked up where they left off as the league leaders in shot attempts (63.85%) during five-on-five play, according to Evolving Hockey. Carolina also ranks first in expected goals (62.5%) after finishing second behind Edmonton last season. If that holds for the remainder of the campaign, it’ll be the fourth consecutive year the Hurricanes will have ranked among the top-five teams in that category.
Carolina parted ways with several players in the offseason, including defensemen Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei, but so far, newcomers Shayne Gostisbehere and Sean Walker have been fit in perfectly on the blue line. Gostisbehere currently leads the club in on-ice shot attempt percentage at five-on-five and Walker is within a percentage point of him.
Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov are leading the team with four points in four games, and Seth Jarvis, Martin Necas, and Jesperi Kotkaniemi are just one point behind them. However, the biggest story so far is that Gostisbehere leads his new team in scoring with three goals in four games, two of which were scored on the top power play unit that he’s quarterbacking. Carolina is 3-for-15 (25%) on the man advantage and 83.33% (3-for-18) the penalty kill through four games.
The betting market opened up with Carolina as a +115 underdog, but apparently, that was generous enough for bettors to back the Hurricanes, as they have moved to +110 at Sports Interaction and +105 at Bet Victor.
Handicapping the Oilers (2-4 SU, 1-5 ATS, 2-3-1 O/U)
Stuart Skinner is one of 22 goaltenders to play at least four games this season, but despite facing the fewest unblocked shot attempts (140), he ranks second-worst in goals saved above expected. While his rough start stems largely from a five-goal outing against Winnipeg in the opener, one solid game every four won’t suffice for the Oilers.
Edmonton ranks second behind Carolina in shot attempts against per 60 minutes at five-on-five and sixth in expected goals against. However, their defense isn’t translating to results, as they’re allowing more even-strength goals per 60 minutes and their penalty kill is struggling (9-for-20). Offense is also an issue: only three teams have scored fewer even-strength goals per 60, and the power play has gone cold, converting just 1-for-15 so far.
The power play, which is one of the best in NHL history, is surprisingly underperforming. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are off to slower starts than usual, while Evan Bouchard has just one goal, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has two assists, and Zach Hyman remains without a goal or a point. There’s no doubt they’ve been unlucky, but according to Evolving Hockey, the Oilers are ranked 22nd with 6.91 expected goals per 60 minutes generated on the power play compared to 10.54 per 60 last season.
However, while the Oilers might consider making changes to their power play structure, they still grade out as one of the best teams at even strength, so things should start to turn their way. Edmonton ranks among the top-five teams in expected goals for and against and they rank second in shot attempts for and against.
My best bet
There’s still no word on whether a player will lose their spot on the team’s top power play unit, but head coach Kris Knoblauch has decided that Jeff Skinner will move back into the top-six alongside Draisaitl and Viktor Arvidsson so that’s where I’m going to focus my attention.
Jeff Skinner Over 2.5 Shots on Goal (+135) and Jeff Skinner Over 0.5 Goals (+300)
No team is better at suppressing shots and chances than the Hurricanes, but the last time these two teams met in Edmonton they combined for more than 70 shots on goal. Skinner leads the team in shots on goal and he’s registered at least three shots in five out of six games, including the last four in a row. Take Skinner to register at least three shots at +135 against the Hurricanes at Sports Interaction. I’m also going to take Skinner to score a goal at +300, rather than +220 at Sports Interaction.
