EDMONTON, AB - The Oilers are starting to turn a corner in their season following a rough start, but tonight they will surely be challenged by a St. Louis Blues team that's off to a hot start to their own campaign.
"They are a prime team in the League right now," said Oilers Head Coach Todd McLellan. "They have to be a top-five team on a nightly basis. One of the big challenges is that (Brayden) Schenn line. The amount of offence that they produce alone, throw in the production from the back end and they are a dangerous offensive team. They get a lot of it done 5-on-5. It's a good test for our group to see if we're moving in the right direction and try to create some traction before we go on the road."
The Blues start is one of their best in their history. Their 13 wins through 19 games is tied for second-most in franchise history. They have a tradition of being one of the better teams you'll face, logging the best record of any team in the NHL since 2013-14 (211-105-31).
This season, the Blues boast three of the top-10 scorers in the League so far in Jaden Schwartz, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Brayden Schenn.
"They are a huge challenge," said Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse. "They have a few guys in the top five of League scoring. With that said, you know every shift you're going to be out there is going to be very important and it's going to be a good challenge for us as a team to defend, play hard and it will be a hard fought game for sure."
"I think they're having a good mix of size, speed, and skill," added Oilers blueliner Adam Larsson. "That's always a weapon when teams have that but I think we can counter that with our speed. We should be good."
Edmonton is looking to build off an 8-2 crushing of the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday.
WELCOME, CAMMALLERI
The Oilers welcomed in Michael Cammalleri this morning, as the veteran winger will play his first game in orange and blue tonight. Cammalleri was acquired in a trade on Tuesday, in which the Oilers sent Jussi Jokinen to the Los Angeles Kings.
"We got a really good player," said Larsson, who played with Cammalleri in New Jersey. "I know what he's capable of doing and he has a real good shot. I had a lot of fun playing with him in New Jersey. I know one thing for sure, he's always open - if you ask him. He's a funny guy too, so he's a good guy for the locker room."
Cammalleri replaces Jujhar Khaira in the lineup, on the wing with Ryan Strome and Iiro Pakarinen. Khaira is feeling the effects of an upper-body injury he suffered in the game against the Golden Knights, so Cammalleri steps in.
"We have to get him the puck," said McLellan. "When I think about the name 'Mike Cammalleri' I think of seeing him when I was in Detroit playing him when he was in LA. I see him in Calgary lowering that knee taking that one-timer and scoring. That's the vision I have. I think he's a competitive guy for his size as well."
LINEUP NOTES:
With Khaira coming out and Cammalleri coming in, the lineup during morning skate looked as follows:
Maroon-McDavid-Draisaitl
Lucic-RNH-Puljujarvi
Cammalleri-Strome-Pakarinen
Caggiula-Letestu-Kassian
Nurse-Larsson
Klefbom-Benning
Russell-Gryba
Cam Talbot was the first goaltender off the ice.
-- Chris Wescott, EdmontonOilers.com
