The Edmonton Oilers play the Minnesota Wild tonight, and more importantly, they play Quinn Hughes.

It’ll be the second time they see him in Wild threads, the first having come just eight days after the deal. And look at what’s happened to Minnesota since that trade. The Wild went from good to great the moment Hughes arrived.

And now the Oilers, fresh off finally securing their first three-game win streak of the season, have to face them.

This is a tall order.

The Wild were already a problem before Hughes. They play structured hockey. They’ve got depth. They’re disciplined defensively. They don’t give up much, and when they get chances, they capitalize. Adding Hughes to that mix? That’s a different level entirely.

“They’re one of the best teams in the league,” Zach Hyman said at Saturday’s morning skate. “They’ve added Hughes (and they’re) a really good team — high-end talent. They’ll play us tough, and it’ll be a good game.”

He’s not wrong. The Wild have been a nightmare matchup for the Oilers in recent years. They don’t get intimidated by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl quite as easily as the Sharks do. They stick to their structure, clog the neutral zone, and force Edmonton to earn every inch of ice. Now they’ve added one of the best defensemen in the league, a guy who brings offence to the blue line, effortlessly transitions the puck, and makes plays at both ends of the ice.

Quinn Hughes changes everything for Minnesota. He sees the game differently. He makes everyone around him better. And on a team that was already deep and well-coached, that addition pushes them into legitimate Cup contender territory.

“Minnesota’s a very good team, but we got over that hump, and found a way to win three in a row,” Darnell Nurse said. “Our resilience and ability to find different ways to win has been (key), so we’re gonna need all of that tonight.”

Nurse also addressed the idea of playing what some might call “cliche hockey” — keeping things simple, sticking to fundamentals, not trying to be too fancy. It sounds basic, but starting simple really does pay off later in games. Who cares if it’s a cliche if it works?

And against Minnesota, simple might be the only way to survive. The Wild don’t give up openings. They force you to execute perfectly. They make you earn every chance.

Nurse also spoke about what Hughes brings to an already dangerous team.

“He’s one of those special players in the league. You add him to a team like that, that has a lot of depth, it adds another dynamic. It’s a challenge all around,” Nurse said.

Hughes isn’t just about offence. He controls games. He dictates pace. He makes smart reads in his own zone and turns defence into offence instantly. For a Wild team that was already hard to play against, adding Hughes gives them another dimension that few teams can match.

The Oilers finally got their third win. But tonight will test everything — their structure, their discipline, their ability to play simple when needed and execute when opportunities arise.

Minnesota’s one of the best teams in the league. With Hughes, they’re even better. The Oilers know it. The question is whether they can handle it.

RNH-McDavid-Hyman

Podkolzin-Draisaitl-Kapanen

Savoie-Samanski-Roslovic

Janmark-Lazar-Frederic

Ekholm-Bouchard

Nurse-Walman

Stastney-Emberson

Jarry

Ingram