Yesterday the Oilers made the decision to recall Khaira & Brossoit and send down both Lander and Gustavsson to the AHL. Gustavsson was a no-brainer. Khaira and Lander might have less to do with NHL hockey and more to do with a certain young Finn.

As mentioned previously, Jonas Gustavsson is as unreliable as a deadbeat dad promising a trip to Disneyland. He was placed on waivers but backed up Talbot in the last game. Even as Talbot was clearly struggling, there was nobody McLellan could turn to. The very next day the Oilers made the switch to Brossoit.

I would suggest that Brossoit hasn’t so much earned this time in the NHL as he has just managed to be a better option than Gustavsson. Brossoit’s AHL save percentage is a lowly .908 this year. Those aren’t the numbers that generally get you to the big leagues. I think he’s in the NHL because he’s been a prospect longer than Ellis, who is playing better, and because the team feels like they owe him a chance.

I don’t like the sound of that and I don’t care about the “human” aspects of managing a team. The goal is to win games, not make everybody happy. That said, I do think there’s a better than 50% chance that even struggling Brossoit is better than Gustavsson. So either way this is an upgrade.

Khaira for Lander, I think, is a move that ensures Jesse Puljujarvi has a centerman who can impact the game offensively in the AHL. Khaira is a fine player and prospect who will probably be a fulltime NHLer next year, but he looks and feels like a 4th liner. His 18 points in 24 AHL games is just fine, but Lander is better than a point per game in the AHL for the last several years.

Considering the goal for Puljujarvi is to play tons and score, I imagine the task for Lander is to help the kid unlock his scoring potential. Lander isn’t there to develop. He was playing fine in Edmonton on the 4th line. Lander is there to develop Puljujarvi. Since Anton’s impact on the 4th line can likely be replicated by Slepyshev, that’s a decent gamble for the long term health of an important Oiler prospect.

Puljujarvi picked up an assist in his first AHL game, for the record.

Jujhar Khaira will play tonight for the Oilers. He’s been progressing steadily as a player in the AHL for a few years and he’s never looked more confident than he has this season. I don’t have his ceiling set very high, but it doesn’t have to be. He might be a replacement for Hendricks in the near future as the 12/13th forward. It is Hendricks who will sit out tonight.

LINEUP

Davidson and Slepyshev are likely to play tonight. Larsson looks to be on the 3rd pair, but ice time is uncertain. Khaira in, Hendricks out.

Maroon McDavid Draisaitl
Pouliot RNH Eberle
Lucic Caggiula Slepyshev
Khaira Letestu Kassian

Sekera Russell
Klefbom Benning
Davidson Larsson

Talbot
Brossoit

OILERS KEYS TO THE GAME

1) Welcome Back, Taylor. This is the first time Taylor Hall plays in Edmonton. I expect that the return will be emotional, but like he’s mentioned before over the last couple of days, it will be different coming into a new building instead of coming into Rexall Place. Nevertheless, we should expect a tribute to Hall as an Oiler and if there’s a modicum of class from the fans then a standing ovation for Hall. The guy didn’t want to leave Edmonton. He didn’t request a trade out of town. This isn’t Pronger coming back after demanding out. This isn’t even Weight coming back after pricing himself out of the Oilers. For a lot of nights he was the only reason to cheer for Oiler fans. What kind of reception will he get? What kind of energy will he bring tonight?

2) Talbot Rebounds. Cam Talbot played a brutal game against the Sharks. He said it himself, he didn’t give the team a chance to win the game. There were other culprits, but he finished the night giving up 5 goals on 28 shots. Edmonton needs their best players to be their best players in big games. So far the Oilers cant say they’ve been getting that and against the Sharks it was Talbot who didn’t show up. The team is expecting a big bounceback performance from Talbot who has been a rock in net for the club. When he’s at his best he minimizes the distance he moves in the net and uses his 6’3” frame to keep the puck out. He moves from side to side extremely well and covers his angles well without challenging from outside the crease.

3) Lucic, Where Are You? Milan Lucic has 1 goal in his last 10 games and is on an 8 game goalless streak. He was signed to be the big, mean, productive winger who would complement McDavid. Today he’s playing on the 3rd line with Caggiula and Slepyshev looking to spark something in his game. Lucic has very quietly been dropping off in production and in role on the team and we’re only halfway through year one of a gazillion year contract. The Oilers paid for more from Lucic and even though it was impossible for him to fill Hall’s shoes offensively, he was expected to make a bigger impact in the so called “big games”. I haven’t seen it, but this is a player who can be better than he’s shown as an Oiler. It’s more than goals and assists with Lucic. He needs to get back to the way he affected games in the beginning of the year when you could count on him to do the little things that kept plays alive.

Puck drops tonight at 7PM Mountain Time on Sportsnet West. Game On!

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