Edmonton @ Pittsburgh preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 23, 2018 ) Pittsburgh 6, Edmonton 5

Sidney Crosby got the better of Connor McDavid in their first meeting this season, capping the Pittsburgh Penguins' 6-5 overtime win with a nifty sequence that saw the two-time Hart Trophy winner split a pair of defenders and lift a backhander into the net to cap a two-goal performance. Crosby and the Penguins bid to continue their dominance over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday when the teams meet at PPG Paints Arena.

Crosby boosted his team-leading point total to 65 after scoring a goal and setting up two others on Monday as Pittsburgh snapped both its four-game skid (0-3-1) and Philadelphia's 10-game point streak (9-0-1) with a 4-1 victory. The 31-year-old, who has 18 points (four goals, 14 assists) in 15 career encounters with Edmonton, has played an integral role in preventing the Oilers from posting a regulation win over Pittsburgh since Jan. 10, 2006. McDavid scored and set up a goal in the 6-5 overtime setback to the Penguins on Oct. 23, and Edmonton is heading into the wrong direction after falling for the seventh time in eight outings (1-5-2) following Saturday's 5-2 setback against the Sharks. "I know the players are frustrated, and we're frustrated at times with it," coach Ken Hitchcock said. "... We're not built like Pittsburgh. We're not built like San Jose."

TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, Sportsnet, TVAS

ABOUT THE OILERS (24-26-5): Zack Kassian, who has nine points (six goals, three assists) in his last 11 contests, was adamant that Edmonton's upcoming three-game road trip is crucial to the team's postseason aspirations. "With the remaining games we have, we need to go on a run here," the 28-year-old Kassian said. "It's no secret, but it seems like we're a better road team right now. We don't know why, but we're excited to get on the road and put our best foot forward." Leon Draisaitl, who leads the Oilers with 32 goals, joined Alex Chiasson in scoring twice in the first meeting with Pittsburgh.

ABOUT THE PENGUINS (29-20-7): Matt Murray made a career-high 50 saves against the Flyers, highlighted by stopping all 28 shots he faced in the second period to surpass the previous franchise mark of 25 recorded by Sebastien Caron on March 11, 2004. "When you're out there, you don't really think about (the number of shots). You just do what you can to try to stop the puck," said the 24-year-old Murray, who made 41 saves versus Oilers in the previous meeting to improve his career mark to 4-0-0 against the club. Former Hart Trophy recipient Evgeni Malkin was suspended one game on the heels of his high-sticking/slashing incident with Philadelphia forward Michael Raffl, the NHL Department of Player Safety announced Tuesday.

OVERTIME

1. Pittsburgh owns a 5-0-0 mark in games pitting Crosby and McDavid, with all five contests resulting in one-goal decisions and three of the five requiring extra time.

2. Edmonton RW Ty Rattie, who was injured while blocking a shot against San Jose, participated fully in Tuesday's practice and is expected to play versus Penguins.

3. Pittsburgh's Justin Schultz (lower leg) could return to the lineup or fellow D Chad Ruhwedel may get the nod after the team placed Olli Maatta (upper body) on injured reserve on Tuesday.

PREDICTION: Penguins 4, Oilers 3