Preview: Blues vs. Oilers

When: Monday, April 1 at 8 p.m. CT
Where: Enterprise Center in St. Louis, MO
Watch: ESPN+, Hulu
Listen: 101 ESPN, Blues App
Tickets: Online at Ticketmaster.com

TEAM SNAPSHOTS

BLUES The St. Louis Blues should hope Saturday was just an early April Fools joke.

In stretch where they earned points in eight of their last nine games, the Blues inexplicably lost 4-0 to the last-place San Jose Sharks.

After a scoreless first period, the Sharks rattled off three unanswered goals in the second. In that period, the Blues got just three shots on the team allowing the most shots against per game in the NHL (35.0).

"In the first period, I thought we started well and we had our opportunities," Blues Head Coach Drew Bannister said, "then you go in the second period and we fell asleep."

Bannister said his team had some more chances in the third, but the hole they dug in the second was too deep to climb out of. Despite outshooting San Jose 21-5 over the final 20 minutes, the Blues could not get anything past Mackenzie Blackwood, who had a 37-save shutout.

"I think now we just (need to) push forward," Colton Parayko said. "At the end of the day, it's past us - can't get those two points now. Eight games left, and all we can do is try to focus and get as many points as we can in those eight."

That loss did some serious damage to St. Louis' playoff hopes. The Blues (39-31-4) are still five points behind the Los Angeles Kings for a playoff spot, but with eight games left, time's running out to make up ground.

The Blues can still get at least one win against the Sharks on their upcoming three-game road trip. After the Edmonton game, they stop in Nashville, San Jose and Anaheim.

OILERS Like the Blues, the Edmonton Oilers also played a team at the bottom of the standings Saturday. Unlike the Blues, they took care of business, beating the Anaheim Ducks 6-1.

"There's always that possibility of (a letdown game) happening," Oilers Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said after the game, "and we said that two points is two points, no matter if we're playing LA, Anaheim or whoever the opponent is."

Edmonton dominated from the jump. Adam Henrique drew first blood just 3:47 in, followed by five more unanswered goals. The Ducks spoiled Calvin Pickard's shutout bid with 4:18 left, but Knoblauch and company already put the game well out of reach. That win was the Oilers' third in a row, and they're now 7-2-1 in their last 10. 

"I thought we got off to a really good start...These games can be tricky," Connor McDavid said, "especially if you give them life early in the game. I thought we did a good job of eliminating that."

McDavid and Mattias Ekholm each added three points, while Zach Hyman scored his 52nd goal of the season. 

Edmonton's season has been a tale of two coaches. After a 3-9-1 start, the Oilers (45-23-4) hired Knoblauch, who coached McDavid in junior hockey. Since he took over Nov. 12, they're 42-14-3, the NHL's best record in that span. Now they hold second place in the Pacific Division, just six points behind the Vancouver Canucks for the top seed.

HEAD TO HEAD This is the third and final meeting between the Blues and Oilers this season. The home team has won each time, but the Oilers took the most recent meeting in overtime on Feb. 28.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

BLUES Brayden Schenn, who has six points in his last eight games, will play in his 500th game as a Blue on Monday. The Blues acquired Schenn from the Philadelphia Flyers on June 23, 2017. Since then, he's racked up 378 points (146 goals, 232 assists) in the Blue Note. 

OILERS With the Oilers, most of the focus goes to McDavid and Draisaitl, but Zach Hyman has had a career year in his own right. Hyman has 52 goals and counting, second to only Auston Matthews for the league lead. He has goals in five of his last six games, including one Saturday against Anaheim.

BLUE NOTES

• In addition to Schenn's 500th game as a Blue, Justin Faulk will also play in his 900th career game Monday.
• The Blues are 5-2-1 in their last eight home games against the Oilers.
• The Blues are 13-5-2 against Pacific Division teams this season.
• The Blues are 7-2-1 in their last 10 games and are 18-11-2 in their last 31 games (since Jan. 20).
• Since joining the Blues in 2021, Pavel Buchnevich has had at least one point in every game against Edmonton. He has eight points in five such games, including a goal in each this season.
• Jake Neighbours, who turned 22 on Friday, scored his 26th goal of the season Thursday against Calgary, becoming one of four players in franchise history to reach at least 26 goals in a season before turning 22.
• Brandon Saad’s four-game goal streak from March 21-28 matched his career-high, which he also did from Jan. 3-8, 2023 (five goals, two assists).