The Edmonton Oilers welcome the Chicago Blackhawks to Rogers Place on Saturday for their final game before the All-Star break.
You can watch the game on Sportsnet and CBC or listen live on the Oilers Radio Network, including 630 CHED.
Subscribe to Oilers+ to unlock the Pre-Game Show that will begin at 8:00 p.m. MT, along with more exclusive live and behind-the-scenes content.

YOUR GAME-DAY ESSENTIALS

GAME DAY VIDEO
COMING SOON: OILERS TODAY | Pre-Game vs. CHI
PRE-GAME RAW | Coach Woodcroft
PRE-GAME RAW | Zach Hyman
PRE-GAME RAW | Evan Bouchard
PRE-GAME RAW | Evander Kane
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PRACTICE | Coach Jay Woodcroft
PRACTICE | Klim Kostin
PRACTICE | Vincent Desharnais
PRACTICE | Kailer Yamamoto
BY THE NUMBERS
Oilers Statistics
Blackhawks Statistics
Stats Comparison
Game Notes
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BLOG: Kostin converts another fan
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VIEWING INFORMATION
You can watch Saturday's game on Sportsnet and CBC at 8:00 p.m. MT.

INSIDE THE OILERS

News and notes from Oilers practice at Rogers Place on Friday, including Klim Kostin converting Flames fans at Oilers Picture Day this week.
>> READ MORE IN THE INSIDE THE OILERS BLOG

PRE-GAME REPORT

EDMONTON, AB - Heading into an extended break is always better when coming off a victory.
"It makes you want to win it more, right?" forward Zach Hyman said pre-game.
For the Edmonton Oilers, that's exactly what their focus is on heading into their final game before the All-Star break on Saturday night at Rogers Place against a Chicago Blackhawks team that's been playing at a level above their second-last designation in the NHL in recent games.
The Oilers experienced first-hand on Wednesday the dangers that any opponent in the League can present regardless of where they are in the standings after a young, hard-working Columbus Blue Jackets team rolled into Rogers Place with vigour and exited with the two points and a 3-2 overtime victory.
A better performance tonight from Head Coach Jay Woodcroft's players is needed if the Oilers want to enter the All-Star break on a high after having their six-game win streak snapped at the hands of the Blue Jackets in the first of only two games this week before 10 days without game action.
"I think that's where our focus is. We want to make sure that we play our best game tonight," Woodcroft said. "We want to feel good about the game we play tonight and there are two points on the table. I think that would make us feel good about our game heading into a break like this."
"That said, the challenge is steep."
The Blackhawks are currently enjoying their best stretch of a troubling 2022-23 NHL season having won seven of their last 10 games, including a 5-1 victory on Thursday night over the Calgary Flames to take points off Edmonton's provincial rivals and do the Oilers a favour in the Pacific Division standings.
Chicago's success over their successful run and season as a whole has come in games when they score three goals or more, with six of their last seven wins being of that variety.

Before there's any talk in the Oilers locker room of a break and sunny mid-season holidays, there are two points to be claimed on Saturday night that would leave the Oilers feeling a lot better about themselves over the pause for All-Star weekend in Sunrise, FL.
"This team that we're playing tonight is coming in on a roll," Woodcroft said. "They won a big game in Calgary the other night and they're going to play us hard, so before we think about anything like a break or if we want to feel heading into the next ten days, there's a job at hand and that's to take two points from a team that's playing really well right now."
"I think obviously Chicago has been playing some good hockey," Evander Kane, who will return to the Oilers lineup tonight from a one-game absence tonight, said pre-game. "They thumped Calgary there the other night. They're playing with a lot of pride right now, and I'm sure they want to go into the break on a high note -- as do we."
Chicago has not been an easy out for the Oilers this season despite winning both meetings at United Center earlier in the season. Their combined average of 10 goals per game (6-5 and 5-4 Oilers victories) are tied for the second-highest in any head-to-head matchup in the NHL this season.
"They've played us tough this year and we've had some good games against them. I expect much of the same tonight," Kane said.

BUILDING INTO THE BREAK

Outside of Wednesday's lapse against Columbus that ended their six-game win streak, the Oilers believe they've put themselves on the right trajectory since the schedule resumed after Christmas.
"I think we really like where we're at," forward Zach Hyman said. "I think like we said earlier, we're finding our game and I think the stretch has been really good. I think since the calendar year turned, we've been a really good team and we've been finding consistency in our game."
The Oilers are 9-3-2 since winning the final Battle of Alberta of the regular season on Dec. 27 at Scotiabank Saddledome, while their 7-2-2 record to begin 2023 is the fifth-best in the League behind the Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils, Seattle Kraken and New York Rangers.

Edmonton can thank its starts to games and holding onto leads, both of which caused issues earlier in the season, along with learning to play with their speed and quick breakouts as major factors for their success according to Hyman.
Winning six of their last seven (6-0-1) pushed the Oilers back into the race for first in the Pacific Division, and another win tonight would set up their push over the final 32 games to win the division by bringing them potentially as close as two points off the top that's currently occupied by the Los Angeles Kings.
The Oilers are coming into Saturday's game with a single-minded focus on earning the two points with another positive showing before there are any discussions about the break. When they return to face the Detroit Red Wings on Feb. 7, the race to first in the Pacific resumes right where it left off.
"You want to kind of set goals for your team leading up to this break. You want to set yourself into a good position heading into that break and coming out of it," defenceman Evan Bouchard said. "But we know what's ahead of us. We know the teams in our division keep winning, so we've got to keep winning ourselves. As long as we take care of our game, I think we'll be okay."

LINEUP NOTES

The Oilers will welcome Kane back to the lineup on Saturday after being away from the team due to personal matters and missing Edmonton's 3-2 OT defeat to Columbus back on Wednesday.
"I knew my personal schedule that I had to deal with this past week, but for me, when I'm ready to play, I'm going to play," Kane said. "I'm not going to just sit out for convenience and do what I can to try to help the team win, so that's just always been my mindset and that's probably not going to change."

The winger is expected to line up to begin tonight's game alongside Leon Draisaitl and Derek Ryan in a likely 11-and-7 scenario for Coach Woodcroft that's led to plenty of success for the Oilers over their recent stretch. The Oilers have gone with the deployment for the last 10 games since defeating the New York Islanders 4-2 on Jan. 7 and have lost only once in regulation during that time.
"I think going to 11-and-7 for the Islanders game forced us to make hard decisions," Woodcroft said. "It's gotten really competitive to be in our lineup and we've seen some results because of that."
Jack Campbell gets the start tonight in goal for Edmonton having won five straight games with a 2.20 goals-against average and .922 save percentage over that span. After a challenging start to his tenure as an Oiler, Campbell is 6-2-0 in his last nine games.
-- Jamie Umbach, EdmontonOilers.com

PREVIEW

OILERS vs. BLACKHAWKS
STREAM: 8:00 p.m. MT; televised on Sportsnet and CBC
Oilers Team Scope
The Oilers aim to head into the NHL All-Star break on a winning note when they take on the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday night at Rogers Place.
"My focus right now is on Chicago and making sure that our team's focus is on Chicago. The played a really good game last night and beat the Calgary Flames five one, and their record over the last little while shows that they can hurt you if you're not ready for them, and they can hurt you if you are ready for them," Head Coach Jay Woodcroft said about the game. "They're a good team with good individual players that we have to be aware that we have a game here before our break starts."
The Blue & Orange just had their six-game winning streak snapped on Wednesday against the Columbis Blue Jackets, but still picked up a point in the 3-2 OT loss.
Stuart Skinner started the contest, making 24 saves on the evening. It was his competitor in the other crease in Joonas Korpisalo that stole the show on evening, making 34 saves, including a couple sensational cross-crease stops on Dylan Holloway and Leon Draisaitl.
Zach Hyman scored his 24th goal of the season on the power-play on a slick feed Connor McDavid, while Derek Ryan scored his seventh on a partial breakaway to account for the Oilers offence.
With a win over the Blackhawks on Saturday, the Oilers can sweep the season series against the Central Division team. Edmonton has two victories over Chicago thus far, a 6-5 win on Oct. 27 and 5-4 win on Nov. 30, both in the Windy City.

Blackhawks Team Scope
Chicago comes into Saturday's contest playing their best hockey of the season with a 7-3-0 record over their last 10 games, including a big 5-1 victory in Calgary on Thursday night.
The Blackhawks saw offensive contributions from up-and-down the lineup with five different goal scorers finding the back of the Flames net. The nicest tally of the night belonged to Jason Dickinson, who found himself the recipient of an excellent Andreas Athanasiou pass and some poor defending by the Flames, to go in all alone on Jacob Markstrom for the breakaway marker for his sixth of the year.
Rookie goaltender Jaxson Stauber made 34 saves on the evening for his second career victory, while Markstrom allowed four goals on 28 shots in the loss.
"I think we're all cohesive and we're all on the same page and working together, that's when we're at our best," Dickinson said after the game. "If we can get all four lines, all six defensemen and the goalie drawn into playing composed and playing together. We're going to be a pretty good team."
The Blackhawks played the contest without franchise stalwart Jonathan Toews who missed the game due to illness. It is unknown if the Chicago captain will return to the lineup when they take on the Oilers at Rogers Place.

By The Numbers
The Oilers have 222 power-play goals since the start of the 2019-20 season, 23 more than the nearest competitor... The Oilers penalty kill is operating at 94.7 per cent since Jan. 11, while their opponents on Saturday are number-one at 95.7 per cent over the same stretch... Connor McDavid enters the game on an 11-game point streak (8G, 9A) with a single point-less game separating it from being a 29-game streak... Leon Draisaitl's 28 points in 20 career games against Chicago gives him the fifth-best points-per game among players who have played 15 games against the historic club (1.40)... Draisaitl is on an 11-game point streak against Chicago, recording 22 points (9G, 13A) over that span...
Patrick Kane's 32 points in the first 44 games is the fewest he's had through that period in his entire career... In 2015-16 Kane had recorded 62 points in his initial 44 games, a 30 points difference... The U.S. forward, alongside Seth Jones and Philipp Kurashev are all tied for the fourth worst plus/minus on the season with a minus-25 rating... However, Kane's 63 points in 48 career games against the Oilers is the fifth best points-per game (1.31) versus the Blue & Orange... Kane trails only Wayne Gretzky (1.57), Marcel Dionne (1.40), Steve Yzerman (1.35), and Doug Gilmour (1.32) among players who have played 40 games against Edmonton...

Injury Report
OILERS - Oscar Klefbom (shoulder) is on IR; Mike Smith (undisclosed) is on IR;
Ryan Murray
(undisclosed) is on IR;
Kailer Yamamoto
(undisclosed) is on IR.
BLACKHAWKS - Jujhar Khaira (back) is on IR; Jarred Tinordi (face) is on IR; Tyler Johnson (ankle) is on IR; Alex Stalock (undisclosed) is day-to-day; Jonathan Toews (illness) is day-to-day.
-- Michael Arcuri, EdmontonOilers.com