PREVIEW: Oilers at Predators
NASHVILLE, TN – The Edmonton Oilers know it hasn’t been the start they’ve wanted to the regular season with an 0-2-0 record, but they also have a firm understanding of how quickly things can turn around.
All you need is one win to steer you back in the right direction.
“We could be .500 in the next two games – who knows?” Evander Kane said on Monday. “But our focus is on tomorrow night, getting our first win of the season, getting a good feeling back in the room and moving on.”
The Blue & Orange begin a two-game road trip on Tuesday night against the Nashville Predators following back-to-back defeats to open the campaign to the Vancouver Canucks. Mattias Ekholm is set to return to Bridgestone Arena for the first time as a member of the opposition after playing in 794 NHL games for the Predators over 12 seasons from 2011 to 2023.
The 33-year-old defender suited up for his first game in over four months on Saturday, recording 15:47 of ice time and finishing minus-1 with one shot on goal after missing the entirety of Oilers Training Camp and preseason with a hip flexor injury.
Head Coach Jay Woodcroft saw the same steady Ekholm they were lucky to acquire from the Predators at last season’s Trade Deadline despite his long layoff from competitive play, but acknowledged it’ll take the veteran some time to get back to 100 percent.
“I saw him go back for a puck, get a forechecker on his back, spin, and pop it to the next player,” Woodcroft said. “That’s what we miss when he’s not in the lineup. He has a real poise about him. But that said, he’s missed a lot of time. You have to respect that and understand that he’s going to continue to work his way into being who he is.”
You can guarantee that his teammates will be using his return to Bridgestone Arena as fuel toward the team’s pursuit of their first win of the season.
“I’m sure that heading to Nashville is going to be an emotional time for him, and I know his teammates are going to lay it on the line to make sure he walks out of that building happy.”