Preview: Edmonton at Toronto
When: 7:30 PM ET, Monday, November 30, 2015
Where: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario
The Edmonton Oilers look to get their top offensive players going again and finish with half of the available points on their five-game road trip when they visit the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday. Anders Nilsson made 39 saves in his ninth start this month as the Oilers defeated Pittsburgh 3-2 in a shootout Saturday to improve to 1-2-1 on their trek.
Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Leon Draisaitl – Edmonton’s top three scorers – have combined for just four points and a minus-7 rating on the trip. The Oilers are tied with Calgary for the worst record in the league (8-14-2) while the Maple Leafs are just one point better (7-11-5) after going winless in their last three games (0-2-1). The red-hot James Reimer missed Saturday’s contest with a lower-body injury and Garret Sparks is expected to make his NHL debut in net Monday. The Maple Leafs must get back in gear offensively as they have managed just six goals in their last four games.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, RSN, TVA
ABOUT THE OILERS (8-14-2): Hall has posted only one assist on the trip but has registered 17 shots in his last four games and leads the team with nine goals and 16 assists. Draisaitl scored a goal Saturday – his eighth in 14 games since being recalled – and Nugent-Hopkins is minus-6 on the trip with a pair of points while Nilsson has surrendered just seven goals in his last four contests. Defenseman Justin Schultz returned Saturday after missing 14 games with a back injury.
ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (7-11-5): Captain Dion Phaneuf recorded a season-high seven shots in Saturday’s 4-2 loss to Washington and has registered three assists in his last two games, tying Tyler Bozak for the team lead with 14 points. James van Riemsdyk has collected four points in his last five contests. Jonathan Bernier (0-8-1) got the start Saturday in place of Reimer, but coach Mike Babcock told reporters he would go with the 22-year-old Sparks (.938 save percentage in the American Hockey League).
OVERTIME
1. The Oilers are 3-for-10 on the power play over their last three games after going 1-for-19 in the previous five.
2. Toronto C Nazem Kadri was seventh in the league with 89 shots through Saturday but has scored just two goals.
3. Edmonton defeated Toronto in their last meeting on March 16 after dropping six straight in the series.
PREDICTION: Oilers 4, Maple Leafs 2