Pre-game report: Oilers vs Kraken

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Finnegan Frost
October 2, 2024 (1:17 PM)

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It's game night baby! The Oilers are gearing up for a preseason re-match against the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena tonight.

The last showdown between these two teams was an eventful one to say the least. The Oilers came through with an epic 5-4 comeback performance, and they will be looking to keep the momentum going. Oilers insider Jason Gregor recently revealed the projected lineup on X (formally known as twitter) and the team will be dressing most of their starting roster.

Perry, Podkolzin, Emberson, Stecher and Pickard skated this morning so, tonight's lineup is likely:
RNH-McDavid-Hyman
Skinner-Draisaitl-Arvidsson
Janmark-Henrique-Brown
Caggiula-Philp-Ryan

Ekholm-Bouchard
Nurse-Dermott
Kulak-J.Brown

Skinner
Rodrigue

According to the NHL, Coach Knoblauch confirmed that Darnell Nurse has officially been cleared for game action and is likely to make his pre-season debut on Wednesday against Seattle. The Hamilton, ON product will start this season with a new defence partner, and the Oilers' two remaining pre-season games are important for him to begin finding chemistry next to a guy like Ty Emberson - a front-runner for the spot beside him on the second pairing.

Right shots Josh Brown and Troy Stecher continue to battle for the sixth and seventh defence spots, while professional try-out Travis Dermott has shown himself to be a potential option for the Oilers and is expected to get at least one of Edmonton's two remaining pre-season games.

Darnell Nurse will be dressing for his first game since coming back from injury, and Noah Philp will be looking to have another strong performance as well. Jason Gregor also reported that if Noah can string together two more strong games, he will make a strong case for himself to crack the starting roster.

source: NHL
PREVIEW: Oilers at Kraken