News Oilers Team Notes

[Edmonton Oilers]

GDB -6.0: More NHLers in the lineup as Oilers host Canucks for pre-season tune up (6 PM MT, Oilers+)

We’re almost through this thing, friends, and I can’t tell you how happy that makes me. Sunday night’s matchup against the Canucks (6 PM MT at Rogers Place) is another box to tick on the way to the regular season, and the only thing I really care about right now is getting there with everyone still standing. At this stage of the pre-season, it’s all about staying healthy, getting a few at-bats in, and fine-tuning, but that doesn’t mean I still don’t want to see the Oilers take care of business against a divisional rival.

Let’s not forget the spiciness that’s been bubbling between these two clubs since the playoffs a couple of years back. Anytime Edmonton and Vancouver square off, it always feels like there’s a little more on the line, and I love it. The Oilers went 2-1-0 against the Canucks last season, and I don’t see any reason why we couldn’t start the annual head-to-head on the right foot. The way I see it, there’s no better time to start beating the Canucks than right now, even if it’s still technically pre-season.

Oddly, I hope Vancouver is good this year. Pacific Division rivalries are way more fun when both teams are throwing punches that actually land, and that wasn’t the case in 2024-25. The Canucks stunk, the Oilers were good, and while both fanbases hoped for more fireworks after an intense playoff series, the reality is that the only ones Vancouver was fighting were themselves. They had drama in the media, drama in the room, and the result was missing the playoffs, with the organization trading off pieces that seemed like core players only months before.

While the rosters on both sides are still far from being finalized, we’re starting to see more and more NHL regulars sprinkled into the mix, and that shift should bring an extra layer of pace as the pre-season moves along. With the Oilers’ big dogs dressing for their second tune-up of the year, it feels like the right time to expect a little more from them. The first game is always about finding your legs, but this one should be about building toward game speed, knocking off some of that summer rust, and giving us a better glimpse of what’s to come once the real schedule kicks off.

Are the Canucks finally ready to roll, or are they going to get in their own way again? Are they going to push their way back to the top of the Pacific Division, or are they going to stumble through another frustrating campaign? Either way, Sunday’s game is just a taste of what’s to come, and we’ll get an even bigger dose later in October when we roll into Vancouver for the #NationVacation. Until then, let’s just get through the rest of this pre-season without anyone getting hurt and be ready to crank things up for real.

LINEUPS…​

Oilers​

Draisaitl – McDavid – Frederic
Howard – RNH – Mangiapane
Henrique – Tomasek – Savoie
Janmark – Lazar – Kapanen

Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Stecher
Kulak – Emberson

Skinner

The Oilers rolled with some heavy artillery at practice on Saturday, icing a lineup that featured McDavid and Draisaitl back together on the top line with Trent Frederic. Depth guys like Tomasek, Savoie, and Emberson also slotted in, giving us a look at how the coaching staff is mixing veterans with hopefuls. These combos could very well be what we see against Vancouver, but I’ll keep updating as news comes out.

Canucks​

O’Connor – Chytil – Garland
Bains – Raty – Karlsson
Sasson – Cootes – Lekkerimaki
Labate – Aman – Sherwood

Marcus Pettersson – Hronek
Forbort – Kudryavtsev
(Other) Elias Pettersson – Joseph

Tolopilo

Based on what was happening at practice in Vancouver yesterday, the Canucks are rolling into Edmonton with a mixed bag of vets and kids, as they continue to work through cuts on way to their opening day lineup. They’ve got some NHL names sprinkled in — Chytil, Garland, Hronek — but a lot of this roster is about giving their prospects a look. Most notably, Conor Garland will be making his pre-season debut for the Canucks, per Jeff Paterson from Canucksarmy. On paper, this is a lineup the Oilers should be able to handle, but you know how these pre-season nights can go.

TONIGHT…​

Game Day Prediction: After a sloppy start to the game by both clubs, the Oilers get the first goal and don’t look back on their way to a 5-3 win.

Obvious Game Day Prediction: Leon Draisaitl will score his first power play goal of the pre-season, and he’ll do it from his office in the right circle.

Not-So-Obvious Game Day Prediction: I’m expecting two fights in tonight’s game. Young guys are looking for jobs, and the veterans already have a healthy disdain for each other. It’s a recipe for violence, my friends.

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Source: https://oilersnation.com/news/game-...ton-oilers-vancouver-canucks-6-pm-oilers-plus