Edmonton Oilers Vs Vegas Golden Knights: Every Point Matters

The Edmonton Oilers host the Vegas Golden Knights in the late game on Hockey Night In Canada tonight. This game should have a playoff feel as both teams are battling for position in the Pacific Division. The Oilers are trying to catch up while the Golden Knights hope to extend their lead.

The top three teams in the Pacific Division are among the hottest in the NHL. In their last 10 games, they all have 8 wins, with the Kings having 2 extra-time losses while the Golden Knights and the Edmonton Oilers have 2 regulation losses.

It is unlucky for each of these teams to be on such a good stretch yet there is very little movement in the standings. It is also a good time of the season for each one of these teams to get hot. In my opinion, this is why first place is so important in this division.

The team that comes in first will play a team from the Central Division while the other two teams will have to battle it out. A good team from the Pacific is going to go home in the first round. This is a shame cause all three are playing like they could win the cup.

An Edmonton Oilers Win In Regulation Is Needed

For the rest of the season, the Edmonton Oilers play both the Golden Knights and Los Angeles Kings twice(including tonight’s game). There can’t be any three-point games if the Edmonton Oilers beat these teams. They need to catch up and gaining only one point isn’t good enough. They need to gain two points.

That all will start tonight with the Edmonton Oilers facing the Vegas Golden Knights. The Knights are currently sitting in first place in the division and are 6 points ahead of the Edmonton Oilers. That can change quickly though. The Oilers still face the Knights one more time after tonight and if they are able two win both they only need to gain two points in the rest of the games to tie them in points.

Edmonton Oilers Projected Lines

Since the trade deadline, Jay Woodcroft has mostly kept his defensive pairs together and I like that. The best part of it now is the fact the Nurse doesn’t have to face the top players on the other team the whole time. Before Ekholm, the Edmonton Oilers were in a position where they didn’t have any other good options.

Now that Ekholm is on the team the Edmonton Oilers actually now have two solid and reliable defensemen. It is nice to see Nurse’s minutes come down and not see it hurt the team as Ekholm fills up those minutes and is able to preform in that role. This is the biggest difference between the team now versus earlier in the year.

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Edmonton Could Be Playing For Home Ice Tonight

By the time the puck drops on this game tonight the Los Angeles Kings game against the Winnipeg Jets will be over. If the Jets are able to defeat the Kings in regulation the Oilers will be just two points behind them and have the tiebreaker.

This means if the Kings lose this afternoon and the Edmonton Oilers win tonight, Edmonton will be holding down second place in the Pacific points-wise. (The Kings will have a game in hand so their win% will be better.) This is another reason why tonight and the rest of the season wins are very important.