Oilers preseason games 2 and 3 take place tonight with split squad against Flames
While it was just a preseason game the Edmonton Oilers were able to get the win yesterday against the Winnipeg Jets. In a game that had very few regular NHL players in it, the Oilers were able to skate away with a 3-2 overtime win, with goals from Raphael Lavoie, Sam O'Reilly and the OT winner from Cam Dineen. It may be a meaningless game, but it is good to see some of the younger prospects for the Oilers having some success.
IT'S GAME DAY!#Oilers pre-season continues with another home game at @RogersPlace against the Flames.
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) September 23, 2024
⏰ 7pm MT
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We'll also send a team to Calgary for the other half of the split-squad matchup.#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/2b8Mmy3wME
Tonight, will be a different story for the Oilers roster. With it being a split squad game, the Oilers will need to ice almost all of the players at train camp. This means we will hopefully be getting our first look at the major players. The main ones being McDavid and Draisaitl, should be on the ice tonight.
I am going to be keeping a close eye on the new free agent signings in the game tonight, Arvidsson and Skinner. I want to see if they can put together some scoring chances and what type of chemistry they can build up in the game tonight.
The Flames are coming off winning their first preseason game as well. They beat the Kraken 6-1 yesterday. It was a similar story for the Flames as it was the Oilers, they did not ice very many of their veterans. Tonight, we should see a lot more top players from them as well.
Veterans who won't play in either of Oilers' preseason games tonight: S. Skinner, Nurse, Kulak, C. Brown, Janmark and Emberson.
— Jason Gregor (@JasonGregor) September 23, 2024
Oilers top lines in EDM will be:
RNH-McDavid-Hyman
J. Skinner-Henrique-Arvidsson
Draisaitl will play with a few offensive prospects.
Expect to win at home and lose in Calgary
For a split squad game, the teams playing will most likely keep their top players at home and they send a worse team on the road. With that being the case, the Oilers will be keeping their stars in Edmonton and sending a majority of their younger players to Calgary. You do not want to tax your top players with an unnecessary road trip.
Calgary will be doing the same thing. So, if you are watching the game going on in Calgary, expect the Oilers to not win that game. Its not becuase the Flames have a better team, it is because the Oilers sent a weaker team. On the opposite side of the coin don't get to excited if the Oilers win big at home.
Next. Revisiting the 2024 NHL entry draft - how did the Oilers make out?. Revisiting the 2024 NHL entry draft - how did the Oilers make out?. dark
At the end of the day todays split squad game is still a preseason game, the main goal of the preseason is to starting to get to game tempo and to stay healthy. The one thing either of these teams do not want to have happen is an injury of any kind. It will be nice to see the top players get some ice time.
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