A strong team win against the Golden Knights gave Edmonton some space in the standings. A loss to Vegas would have put them at 28 points while keeping the Oil at 31. Things are still very close in the Pacific, making these division games crucial for Edmonton’s long term success.
One of the most frustrating things about Edmonton is still how hot and cold they can be, especially playing against poor teams. Things looked great against Vegas with all lines factoring in to the play and Edmonton played a great road game. Against the LA Kings, Edmonton struggled to get anything going.
Tonight Edmonton has a chance to build on the Vegas game and try and keep some consistency going. The Coyotes are right behind Edmonton in the standings with a game in hand. People were not expecting Edmonton to be first in the division a few months ago and were certainly not expecting the Coyotes to be right on their tails. Arizona is getting some depth scoring through their lineup and Kuemper has been crucial in keeping the GA down.
LINEUP
OILERS
Draisaitl-McDavid-Kassian Neal-RNH-Archibald Granlund-Haas-Nygard Russell-Sheehan-Chiasson
Nurse-Bear Klefbom-Jones Russell-Larsson
Koskinen
COYOTES
Keller-Stepan-Kissel Dvorak-Schmaltz-Garland Cruise-Soderberg-Hinostroza Hayton-Richardson-Fischer
OEL-Demers Chychrun-Goligoski Ness-Oesterle
Kuemper
OILERS PLAYER PROFILE - MARKUS GRANLUND
Party of Holland’s plan for the summer was bringing in depth players who have been consistent 10+ goal scorers. Granlund was one of those guys and like many of them to start the season, performed well below expectations. The fourth liner has 2 goals in his last 3 games and is starting to chip in offensively.
COYOTES PLAYER PROFILE - LAWSON CROUSE
On his draft day, many looked at Crouse as a bust candidate. A big player who wouldn’t be able to produce in the NHL. To his credit, Crouse has turned into a solid middle 6 player and has 5 goals on the season.
3 KEYS TO VICTORY
1.) Back to Back - This is only the second back to back situation Edmonton has played in this year. Last time Edmonton played a weak Detroit team and lost 3-1 and then bounced back with a dominant 4-1 win over Columbus.
2.) Déjà vu- Last time Arizona and Edmonton faced off I pointed out the need to challenge Kuemper early and often. The Coyotes still don’t give up many second or third chances so Edmonton needs to find a way to capitalize.
3.) Third Pairing - Its only been a couple of games and the situation isn’t fair but Adam Larsson needs to find a way to be better. The Larsson Russell pairing was the weakest link against the Golden Knights with both players finding ways to be on the wrong side of the puck. Tonight needs to be a bounce back performance for the pair.