GAME DAY: OILERS AT CANUCKS
8 p.m., Edmonton at Vancouver, Sportsnet/630 CHED
LAST TIME THEY MET
The Oilers split a pair of meetings with the Canucks this season, losing 3-2 in the second game of the season and then posting a 5-2 decision in January. Connor McDavid has one assist against Vancouver this year. Bo Horvat and Brandon Sutter each have two goals against Edmonton.
THE CANUCKS
After losing seven games in a row, the Canucks have pulled out of their dive and are playing some better hockey lately, coming off back-to-back 4-1 wins over the Anaheim Ducks and Dallas Stars. They’ve won three of their last four games, but they are still just 13-18-6 on home ice.
HOT HOT HOT
McDavid won the Art Ross and the Hart trophies last season, but he might be playing the most productive hockey of his career right now. He is on a torrid pace down the stretch with six goals and six assists in his last four games to pull away in the NHL scoring race.
I HAD MY GUY
On a night when the Oilers gave up seven straight goals and had eight players finished minus-2 or worse (Drake Caggiula was minus-4), Adam Larsson, Jujhar Khaira, Milan Lucic, Anton Slepyshev and Jesse Puljujarvi all finished even against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
TALE OF TWO SEASONS
It’s been a bizarre season for Lucic. After putting up 26 points in the first 36 games of the season, he hit a drought of biblical proportions, managing just eight points in the last 41 games. The slump includes a 14-game pointless streak and 30 games without a goal.
THE BIG MATCHUP
Sedin vs. Draisaitl
If the two second lines go head to head on Thursday, it will be an interesting matchup between Canucks veteran Henrik Sedin (who always gets a little help from his brother Daniel) and 22-year-old Leon Draisaitl, who’s been running hot and cold lately.
Vancouver’s old dog still has a lot of tricks up his sleeve, but it should be incumbent on Draisaitl and his linemates to take advantage of an opponent that shouldn’t be able to match his strength and speed. With McDavid figuring in on 11 of Edmonton’s last 15 goals, a little help would be nice.
EDMONTON
Nugent-Hopkins, McDavid,
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Ty Rattie
Caggiula, Draisaitl, Pontus Aberg
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Lucic, Ryan Strome, Puljujarvi
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Slepyshev, Khaira, Zack Kassian
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Darnell Nurse, Larsson
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Kris Russell, Ethan Bear
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Yohann Auvitu, Matt Benning
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Cam Talbot
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Laurent Brossoit
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VANCOUVER
Nikolay Goldobin, Horvat, Jake
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Virtanen
Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin, Sam
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Gagner
Darren Archibald, Sutter, Tyler
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Motte
Reid Boucher, Nic Dowd, Jussi
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Jokinen
Alex Edler, Troy Stecher
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Michael Del Zotto, Derrick Pouliot
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Ashton Sautner, Alex Biega
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Jacob Markstrom
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Anders Nilsson
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SPECIAL TEAMS
Edmonton: PP 14.8% (31st in
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league), PK 75.5% (28th in league)
Vancouver: PP 21.6% (10th in
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league), PK 78.7% (21st in league)
VANCOUVER
Derek Dorsett, RW, (neck); Brendan ■
Gaunce, C, (foot); Markus Granlund, C, (ankle); Loui Eriksson, LW, (upper body); Erik Gudbranson, D, (shoulder); Sven Baertschi, LW, (shoulder); Brock Boeser, RW, (back); Chris Tanev, D, (knee)
OILERS
Oscar Klefbom, D, (shoulder); Mike ■
Cammalleri, LW, (undisclosed)