Vegas @ Edmonton preview
Rogers Place
Last Meeting ( Nov 27, 2021 ) Edmonton 3, Vegas 2
The Edmonton Oilers are hoping to pick up where they left off before the All-Star break when they begin a three-game homestand against the Pacific Division-leading Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday night.
The Oilers, who trail the Golden Knights by eight points in the division while in fifth place, bounced back from an ugly 2-11-2 stretch to go 5-0-1 in their final six games before the break. They are three points behind the Calgary Flames for the second wild card in the Western Conference.
Considering Edmonton has the last two Hart Trophy winners on its roster in Connor McDavid (2021) and Leon Draisaitl (2020) who both also rank in the top three in scoring in the league, it's fair to say it was a disappointing first half of the season for the Oilers.
There remains plenty of optimism heading into their final 40 regular-season games thanks to the recent addition of forward Evander Kane (two goals in three games) and the return of starting goaltender Mike Smith (thumb) off injured reserve.
"We've felt the extremes," McDavid said at the All-Star Game in Las Vegas. "We've had great stretches this year and really bad stretches. Coming in and preparing the same every day and working hard is my way dealing with that."
Winning five of their final six games before the break relieved some of the pressure on a team expected to contend for a Stanley Cup title.
"We're just finding ways to get wins," said McDavid, who has 23 goals and 60 points. "We were finding ways to lose games and right now we're finding ways to win games. I feel like everyone in the room, everyone has their confidence back, everyone had their mojo going again, and there's a good feeling in the room right now."
Draisaitl is second in the league with 32 goals, one behind Chris Kreider of the New York Rangers.
"We obviously had a couple of really tough stretches that didn't go our way," Draisaitl said. "We didn't really have it, but the last two weeks have been better, a step in the right direction. We have to continue to get better because, obviously, we need a strong push."
The Oilers hope their strong push starts with Tuesday's contest against the Golden Knights, who they have defeated twice this season. Both Edmonton wins (5-3 on Oct. 22 and 3-2 on Nov. 27) took place at Las Vegas. Edmonton is a sparkling 10-2 against Pacific Division opponents.
Vegas holds a two-point lead over both Los Angeles and Anaheim and faces a road-heavy second half of the season, with 21 of their final 36 games away from home. The Golden Knights finish a back-to-back at Calgary on Wednesday, then get a week off before hosting Western Conference-leading Colorado on Feb. 16. That is when center Jack Eichel, who took part in his first contact practice on Monday since undergoing disc replacement surgery in his neck on Nov. 12, is expected to join the team.
"He's been cleared for contact," Vegas head coach Peter DeBoer said. "That's the first day of full contact that he's had in 17 or 18 months. Now it's a matter of, how does he respond? Do a little bit more the next day and a little bit more the next day. Hope for no setbacks. He feels great right now in talking to him. He's excited. I don't know what the timeline will be but at least the process has started."
DeBoer said defenseman Zach Whitecloud won't make the trip because of a broken bone in his foot.
--Field Level Media