Edmonton Oilers making multiple forward line changes amid losing streak
The Edmonton Oilers are still searching for their first victory of 2026, and they’re shuffling up the forward lines trying to find it.
December proved to be a return-to-form month for this Oilers squad. They found a way to scrape by with a 9-5-1 record, which helped vault them to the top of the Pacific Division. It felt like Edmonton was finally starting to play to its best, but the team has hit a bit of a snag of late.
The last three games have been less-than-stellar for the Oilers. They were saved by Calvin Pickard in a 3-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets, but were absolutely outclassed by both the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers on home ice in each of the last two games.
Edmonton is still clinging to the division lead, but is in desperate need of some wins to help give a little bit of breathing room. With the lowly Nashville Predators coming into town on Tuesday night, head coach Kris Knoblauch has opted to make some line changes to his group.
OilersTV’s Tony Brar had the full lineup from Monday morning’s practice at Rogers Place.
EDM lines & pairings — Monday’s Practice:
RNH – McDavid – Hyman
Podkolzin- Draisaitl – Kapanen
Howard – Henrique – Roslovic
Janmark – Lazar – Savoie
Mangiapane – Frederic – HutsonEkholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Regula
Stastney – Emberson
Walman – StillmanIngram
Pickard#Oilers— Tony Brar 🚀 (@TonyBrarOTV) January 5, 2026
The top line of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Connor McDavid, and Zach Hyman is the only trio that hasn’t been separated, and that is for good reason. Though the team has been struggling, this has been one of the top lines in the entire NHL over the last month or so. Keeping them together felt like a no-brainer and is far from the reason for the Oilers’ recent struggles.
Leon Draisaitl and Vasily Podkolzin continue to anchor Edmonton’s second line, but they will have Kasperi Kapanen flanking the right wing. The 29-year-old Finn has not played a game since October due to injury, and his return was delayed after getting re-injured in practice in late November.
Kapanen should help to add some speed to that line, although his offensive production has always been a bit underwhelming.
Moving into the bottom-six, which has been anemic for Edmonton this season, the kid line has been completely dismantled after just one game. Ike Howard has been promoted to third-line duties alongside Adam Henrique and Jack Roslovic. Matt Savoie, meanwhile, will remain on the fourth line with Curtis Lazar and Mattias Janmark.
Knoblauch seems to be sending a message to veterans Andrew Mangiapane and Trent Frederic, both of whom appear set to be healthy scratches on Tuesday night alongside rookie Quinn Hutson.
The defensive group remain largely untouched. Jake Walman, who hasn’t played since mid-November, was back skating with the main group. Knoblauch hopes to reinsert Walman back into the lineup by early next week.
Between the pipes, Edmonton will be turning back to Connor Ingram. The 28-year-old has a 2-2-0 record with the Oilers and is 3-2-2 all-time in seven games against Nashville.