Edmonton Oilers vs. Nashville Predators
When: Thursday, 8 p.m. MT, Bridgestone Arena
TV: Sportsnet West. Radio: 880 CHED
Odds: Oilers + 110, Predators – 132
The buzz
While not much has been going right for the Oilers so far this season, things took a turn for the worst and they will be without their captain, Connor McDavid, following an ankle injury in their previous game, which will keep him out the next two to three weeks.
The quote
“Now that you’re missing someone who’s playing about 22 minutes a night, there’s a lot more rhythm, flow for those third-, fourth-line guys.”
• Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch, on McDavid’s ankle injury.
The Poll
The news
• In a bit of a twist, the team that sometimes goes with both McDavid and Leon Draisaitl on the top line when the going gets tough, will have neither on the top line in this one. Draisiatl will not be moving up from second line centre to take over the top line in McDavid’s absence. Instead, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will move over from left wing and be replaced by Jeff Skinner, promoted from the third line.
• That leaves the second line completely in tact, because why make for more adjustments? (Even if it means Edmonton’s next best player is not on the top line).
• The Oilers have recalled forwards Drake Caggiula and Noah Philp from Bakersfield of the American Hockey League. Both are slotted in on the fourth line, with centre Derek Ryan coming out after earning zero points over the first 10 games.
The lineup
Forwards
Skinner-Nugent-Hopkins-Hyman
Podkolzin-Draisaitl-Arvidsson
Janmark-Henrique-Brown
Caggiula-Philp-Perry
Defence
Ekholm-Bouchard
Nurse-Stecher
Kulak-Emberson
Goalie
Skinner
The injuries
Connor McDavid (ankle).
The prediction
McDavid or not, the Oilers have had nothing but success lately against the Predators, having picked up points in 14 of their last 15 games against the Predators (12-1-2), with 65 goals-for and 36 goals-against.
The vibe
(1) Adam 🇨🇦 on X: “@EdmontonOilers Drai if ur reading this, please carry us” / X
(FAN FORUM: Do you have a specific question for a player? Pass it along to @edmontonjournal and we’ll get some of them in a future edition.)
Bookmark our website and support our journalism:Don’t miss the news you need to know — add EdmontonJournal.com and EdmontonSun.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.
You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun.