The Edmonton Oilers began an important stretch of home games with a strong win and will try to build on it when they host the St. Louis Blues on Saturday.
The Oilers are coming off a 6-3 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday, which started a stretch where they will play eight of their next nine games at home before the Christmas break.
Edmonton has a 6-6-1 record at home, but they’ve won four out of their last five games, scoring 20 goals during that stretch.
“Leading into the game, we were No. 2 in expected goals for, and we’ve been pretty much two or three all season long,” said Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch. “And just this last week or so, we’ve been able to put the pucks in the net. A little bit is about generating chances, and we’ve generated chances, but it’s also about having the skill to finish.”
As expected, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have been leading the offensive push during Edmonton’s winning streak after a slow start. The Oilers also got a big boost with the return of Zach Hyman, who had missed five games due to injury. Hyman scored twice in his first game back.
Hyman, who scored 54 goals last season, had only three goals in his first 20 games this season.
“Being back is the best,” Hyman said. “To get a win and being able to contribute feels good. I think it was a good reset. I obviously didn’t have the greatest start. When I say not the greatest start, I just wasn’t scoring. I thought I was playing pretty good and getting looks and getting chances and whatnot. Eventually, they were going to go in.”
The Blues are coming off a wild 4-3 overtime win over the Calgary Flames on Thursday, where they lost leads of 2-0 and 3-2 before recovering to secure the victory.
“We didn’t have it for whatever reason, but we believe we’re a good team and good teams find ways to do it on the road, whether it’s overtime, whether it’s late in the game,” said St. Louis forward Robert Thomas, who scored once and had two assists. “We just fought and found a way to get a win.”
Since Jim Montgomery became the coach on Nov. 24, the Blues have gone 4-0-1 and have won the first two games of a four-game road trip, starting with a 4-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets.
“I think just everyone’s committed to giving their best effort,” said St. Louis goaltender Jordan Binnington. “I think system-wise it’s been a positive change, and he finds a way to get the best out of his guys, encouraging, good meetings and his sense of humor. … It’s fun playing hockey right now and just getting those two points. You could see the excitement on our team.”
This game also marks the return of forward Dylan Holloway and defenseman Philip Broberg to Edmonton. Both players left the Oilers after signing offer sheets with the Blues that the Oilers did not match.
Broberg, who had two assists in Calgary, has 12 points in 15 games this season, while Holloway is on a five-game point streak with four goals and four assists.
“I’ve been thinking about it for a bit. It should be fun,” said Holloway, who expects Edmonton fans to boo him. “It’ll be different playing on the opposite side, but at the same time, it’ll be a fun experience.”
