PREVIEW: Oilers vs. Blue Jackets

The Edmonton Oilers open a three-game homestand on Thursday with a visit from the Columbus Blue Jackets to Rogers Place.

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PREVIEW: Oilers vs. Blue Jackets

EDMONTON, AB – All hands on deck.

The Oilers will look to rebound from Tuesday's 1-0 defeat to the Vegas Golden Knights when they host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night at Rogers Place.

It was nearly a stalemate on Tuesday, where the Oilers heavily outshot their opponent 28-16. The Oilers have been outshot in only two games this season and own the highest shot differential in the League this campaign at +179 over 25 games.

The defeat ended Edmonton's three-game winning streak and a chance to pull within three points of the Pacific Division lead. The Oilers have now been shut out the second-most in the NHL this season with four, with one of their opponents from their previous win streaks in Utah Hockey Club having the most with five.

“It was a tight-checking game, and there wasn’t much room,” Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said post-game on Tuesday. “The shots showed it.”

The players shared a similar sentiment.

“I thought we had enough chances in the third period to tie it up, but obviously, their goalie was on,” added Leon Draisaitl. “We created enough [chances] to win the game.”

Mattias Ekholm mentioned the Oilers are quite familiar with the Vegas Golden Knights and that they know “how they play,” while knowing from experience that it's “hard to generate offence against them.”

The Golden Knights remain atop the Pacific division after winning the first game since 1944 that had both teams combine for one or less goal and no penalty minutes.

The Oilers re-assigned Drake Caggiula to the Bakersfield Condors after Tuesday's defeat, which is a good sign that the return of Zach Hyman to the lineup is imminent. Hyman has been out of the lineup since Nov. 19 with an undisclosed injury and has three goals and eight points in 20 games played this season.

The Oilers have had a significantly improved penalty kill as of late, posting a mark of 95.5 percent since Nov. 12. Boston is the next closest team at 89.9 percent.

It's also no secret that the Blue Jackets and Oilers have struggled on the powerplay this season, with both teams tied for 22^nd in the League with an identical 17.7 percent. But there is hope for each club, as Columbus and Edmonton have experienced some misfortune as well with both teams tied for the second-fewest power play opportunities this season (62).

This is Columbus’ first visit to Rogers Place since Johnny Gaudreau’s tragic passing this past offseason. While he spent nine years in Calgary before his move to the Blue Jackets, he was deeply respected by many Oilers players – including their captain, who'll be a part of Canada's 4 Nations Face-Off roster this coming February.

“I’m grateful I had the chance to play against him. I played a playoff series against him, had many heated battles in the Battle of Alberta against him, and got to know him a little bit,” Connor McDavid said last summer.

• RELEASE: Ekholm & Arvidsson to play for Sweden at 4 Nations Face-Off

Leon Draisaitl signed an extension last summer with the Oilers, but due to it occurring at the same time as the Gaudreau tragedy, the Oilers and Draisaitl waited to release the news to the press and released it the following week.

Connor McDavid is the all-time leading scorer per game against the Blue Jackets, averaging an impressive 1.76 points per game. Nikita Kucherov is second with 1.54.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is on a six-game home point streak against Columbus recording two goals and five assists over that span. Darnell Nurse is also on a point streak against Columbus with points in four consecutive games. Jeff Skinner has put up nine points over his last six games against the Blue Jackets including two goals, but the Oilers as a team have struggled against Columbus recently.

The Blue Jackets defeated the Oilers 6-1 when they met in Ohio earlier this season and have won five of their last six meetings against their Canadian opponents. At even strength, the Blue Jackets have 22 goals to the Oilers’ nine over that span.

Over both franchise’s histories, Edmonton still has a significant advantage at home. They have won 24 of 33 all-time matchups when the Blue Jackets are in Edmonton.

The Blue Jackets have not had much success this season, but when they are leading in between periods, they have been hard to stop. When leading after the first period, they are 9-2-0 this season and are 8-0-1 when leading after the second.

However, if the Oilers can get ahead early, it should prove fruitful. The Blue Jackets have won once all season when trailing after the first period (1-5-0) and once when trailing after the second period (1-10-1).

Zach Werenski (26 points in 24 games) and Kirill Marchenko (24 points in 24 games) lead the way for the Blue Jackets’ attack.

Before Tuesday’s 3-0 loss to the Flames, the Blue Jackets had picked up points in six consecutive games.

The expected goalie for the Oilers is Stuart Skinner, who succumbed to the Blue Jackets’ offence last time out after giving up six goals. He has posted a .889 save percentage this season and a 2.97 goals-against average.

On the other end, the Blue Jackets are projected to start Elvis Merzlikins, who has posted a .894 SV% and a 3.00 GAA this season.