BLOG: New lines & defence pairings at Oilers practice

PALM DESERT, CA – The Oilers showcased some new looks up front and on the back end on Thursday as they skated at the practice rink in Acrisure Arena, home of the AHL's Coachella Valley Firebirds.

Ahead of facing his long-time former team the Anaheim Ducks on Friday, Corey Perry was elevated to a line with Leon Draisaitl and Evander Kane during Thursday's skate, while Warren Foegele joined Ryan McLeod and Dylan Holloway.

"We felt that we wanted to make a little adjustment, trying to get a little more scoring," Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said. "Last few games, we haven't had very much scoring unless Connor [McDavid] and Leon have been on the ice together. And obviously Corey is a player that can play with skill and has an ability to score goals. Hopefully we can build some chemistry with those three."

This actually isn't the first time Kane and Perry have played together, as Kane pointed out they were teammates with Team Canada at both the 2010 and 2012 IIHF World Championship.

"I played with Perrs a long time ago at World Championships and we had some success together," he smiled. "So hopefully we can reignite a little bit of that from about 12-13 years ago."

Edmonton also had all-new defence pairings as Darnell Nurse was joined by Vincent Desharnais, Brett Kulak was with Evan Bouchard, and veterans Mattias Ekholm and Cody Ceci formed a duo.

Knoblauch said the forward lines are likely to be rolled out against the Ducks but cautioned that Thursday's defence pairings were more experimental in nature, though they could be deployed soon in game action as well.

To round out the changes from Tuesday's 3-1 defeat to the Vegas Golden Knights, Calvin Pickard was in the starter's net at practice and is confirmed to get the start on Friday in Anaheim.