PREVIEW: Oilers to host Flames in 2023 Heritage Classic at Commonwealth Stadium

The Edmonton Oilers will face the Calgary Flames on Sunday in the 2023 Tim Hortons Heritage Classic at Commonwealth Stadium.

You can watch the game on Sportsnet at 5:00 PM MT or listen live on the Oilers Radio Network, including 630CHED.

Subscribe to Oilers+ to unlock the Pre-Game Show that will begin 45 minutes before puck drop, along with more exclusive live and behind-the-scenes content.

HERITAGE CLASSIC PREVIEW: Oilers vs. Flames 

EDMONTON, AB – Hello, Heritage Classic.

And hello, Connor McDavid.

The day has finally arrived for the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames to take to the ice at Commonwealth Stadium on Sunday night at 5:00 PM MT for the 2023 Tim Hortons Heritage Classic, which returns to the venue that housed the NHL’s first-ever outdoor game almost 20 years ago on a chilly November evening in Oil Country.

A total of 57,167 fans braved frigid conditions at -18 degrees Celsius on November 22, 2003 to watch the Montreal Canadiens defeat the Edmonton Oilers 4-3 in the outdoor game that would serve as the cold opening to 36 more outdoor showcases for the NHL over the next two decades. Yanic Perreault and Richard Zednik each scored twice for the Canadiens to hand the Oilers the defeat in the inaugural Heritage Classic, which has yet to include a hat trick over six previous renditions in 2003 (Edmonton), 2011 (Calgary), 2014 (Vancouver), 2016 (Winnipeg), 2019 (Regina) and 2022 (Hamilton).

A player who will certainly be hungry to buck that trend on Sunday will be Oilers captain Connor McDavid, who participated in Edmonton’s first on-ice practice at Commonwealth Stadium on Saturday and has a good chance of returning to the lineup from injury in time to help his team break an early-season slump with a victory in the Heritage Classic.

“I thought it was a good sign that he practiced in a full pre-game skate today, so we'll see,” Head Coach Jay Woodcroft said. “But he looked pretty good to me. 

“I think it's in conjunction with a few things – it's the player in conjunction with our team doctor, our team training staff, and then ultimately, the organization as a whole. But I thought today was a good day. It was a good step, and we'll see how he is when he wakes up in the morning.”

The captain was given a 1-to-2-week recovery period for an upper-body injury he suffered during last weekend’s 3-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets at Rogers Place, and his return could provide a major boost to an Oilers team that’s coming off a 3-0 shutout defeat on Thursday to the New York Rangers.

"I don't know if he's playing or not. I can't give you that answer, but if he's in, he's the best player in the world and he has been for I don't know how many years,” said Leon Draisaitl, who leads the Oilers in scoring with 11 points in seven games but hasn’t scored a goal in four straight.

“He's going to give us something that you can't replace, so if he's in, we're obviously very excited.”

The high-intensity 45-minute practice was followed by a well-attended family skate, where friends and loved ones got the opportunity to join players, coaches, staff and management members on the ice in a fun and relaxed environment that can only contribute positively to their push to end their four-game losing streak under the lights at Commonwealth.

“I think it was a good skate for us,” Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said. “We worked on what we needed to work on, and then after that just relaxed a little bit, had some laughs and had some fun with the families.

“Tonight, we’ll get focused on tomorrow and we know it's a different look than a normal game, but at the same time, our mindset is we're going out here to win a game.”

A ‘CLASSIC’ TURNING POINT?

Beyond the pure spectacle of the outdoor rink and the 50,000-plus fans expected to turn out in chilly but manageable winter conditions, the Blue & Orange see Sunday’s Heritage Classic as the perfect opportunity to come together as a group for the event and use the energy generated from the Battle of Alberta as a catalyst to get themselves out of their early-season slump.

“That's what our hope is,” Woodcroft said. “We're looking for that stimulus to get us going to play at the level that we know we can play at. I said to our team, I think we've had 100 wins in the last two years. We're returning a lot of the same players we have in our room. It's about making sure we dig in here. We understand that we didn't get off to the start we wanted to get off to, but we have the answers internally. It's time to get playing.”

Woodcroft continued: “I think we've played five playoff rounds, which is as much as anybody's played in the last two years. We have a lot of really good hockey players. We haven't played to our potential yet. We are aware of that. We are working to make sure that we take a step tomorrow. 

“I think it's an opportunity, just like it's an opportunity to play in a unique type of game like the Heritage Classic. It's an opportunity for us to take a step. And I know that our team plays its best hockey against its provincial rival.”

The Oilers' rivals from down south will have similar ambitions.

Both the Flames and Oilers enter the Heritage Classic having a combined record of 3-10-2, with both clubs experiencing some franchise-worst struggles to begin the 2023-24 NHL season. Edmonton’s 1-5-1 record is tied for their worst seven-game start to a season, while Calgary is experiencing their second-worst eight-game beginning to a year with a 2-5-1 record.

Together, they’ve allowed the fourth- and fifth-most goals against in the NHL this season, while scoring only 17 goals each to tie for the sixth-fewest in the League at this early stage in the campaign.

It hasn’t been smooth sailing for Alberta’s teams, but there’s nothing like the atmosphere and the adventure of playing in an outdoor game when it comes to providing the fuel for a potential launching point for your teams’ turnaround.

“Our tough stretch has been at the start of a season, so it feels different, but I think everybody is working and endeavouring to be at their absolute best anytime,” Woodcroft said. “When you're in one of those situations that we find ourselves in and you can do something out of the ordinary like partake in an outdoor game at home – families are in the building, you practice outside, you have a family skate – I think that brings juice to the group and provides a necessary jolt to the system that's what our hope is. 

“I thought today was a good day. We have to build on it by having a good day tomorrow.”

Connor McDavid echoed his coach's statement, saying that it’s high time for him and his teammates to reach their full potential after a disappointing start by their own standards and expectations for this season.

“I think you'd be very concerned if guys were coming up here and being joyful and talking about how it doesn't really matter,” McDavid said. “Obviously we know it hasn't been a good start, things haven't gone well, everything that has gone wrong feels like it or could go wrong has gone wrong, and we're going to change that tomorrow.”

“We feel this is a good little way for our group to come together in a unique situation and kind of a fun environment with lots of families around.”

A BETTER 60-MINUTE EFFORT

“I think our team's in a good frame of mind,” Woodcroft said during his media availability on Friday. “We have a good sense of belief in each other, but we’ve got to go out and show it and we’ve got to show it for 60 minutes. 

“It can't be a 20-minute plan. It can't be a 40-minute plan – it has to be a well-executed, 60-minute plan.”

The Oilers have liked certain areas of their game over the course of their slow start, but beyond their lone win this season in Nashville, they’ve yet to be satisfied with their effort over the full 60 minutes in any of their other contests.

“I think there are pieces of our game here and there that we can be happy with, but obviously we need to get better and we're going to start tomorrow,” Nugent-Hopkins said.

Ultimately, the Oilers’ lapses during little and larger stretches of games have added up, leading to a lot of reflection from the players and coaches about how they can improve their all-around game in order to contribute more 60-minute performances that meet their standards.

“I think starts of periods, the last couple of minutes of periods, and big shifts after goals,” McDavid said. “Those are the big momentum swingers and we're losing all those battles. We've had good starts to some periods, but just little momentum swings that we haven't been able to either take care of.”

LINEUP NOTES

Connor McDavid lining up alongside Leon Draisaitl and Warren Foegele on the top line during Saturday’s twirl around the outdoor rink at Commonwealth was the biggest news of the day.

But as for who’s seen the biggest role increase over Edmonton’s first seven games, that mantle belongs to Foegele, who’s earned his opportunity to play alongside the Dynamic Duo in Sunday’s Heritage Classic with some strong early returns this season.

“He's somebody that’s skating well. He's creating havoc on the forecheck. He's shooting the puck,” Woodcroft said. “It's no accident that he's having some success, because he's going to hard areas. He's finding himself in hard areas in order to find success, and it's a credit to him. He's a very hardworking person. 

“I'm happy for him because for a long time, he's been fighting for the movement up the lineup and he deserves everything he's getting.”

The 27-year-old winger is second in goals on the Oilers with three and has recorded four points in his first seven games, where he’s showcased his fast skating, strong shooting and the ability to punish defenders with his relentless forechecking.

The eyes might be focused on McDavid on that line, but it’s Connor who’s feeling excited to play alongside the player who’s arguably had the best beginning to the season out of any Oiler.

“You talk about our group and a lot of guys not getting up to good starts or a good start. He hasn’t been one of them,” McDavid said. “He's gotten off to a great start, looks great, and he’s been dangerous every single game shooting the puck with lots of confidence and making plays.

“He's somebody that is opening up a lot of ice for his linemates and somebody that I'm excited to play with.”

Draisaitl mirrored those sentiments from his other half of the Dynamic Duo, saying that once Warren gets going, he’s one of the hardest players to halt.

“I think tenacity; a lot of energy,” Draisaitl said. “Obviously he's a bit of a bull. He skates really well. He's hard, and he does things the right way. He does it hard and there's lots to like about his game. He's maybe the only guy on our team that's off to a pretty good start really, so we need him to keep that going.”

View the Oilers full projected lineup for the Heritage Classic here.