Oilers make wholesale line changes to forwards and defensive pairs
The Edmonton Oilers have shuffled their lines following the end of their historic 16-game winning streak.
With a 3-1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights fresh on their mind, the team trotted out some new lines at practice this afternoon. The Oilers were practicing in Coachella Valley as they were preparing for a game against the Anaheim Ducks tomorrow night.
It appears Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch decided that the forward lines needed a bit of a shakeup. Oilers TV’s Tony Brar shared the new-look lines on social media.
Oilers practice in Coachella Valley:
RNH – McDavid – Hyman
Kane – Draisaitl – Perry
Holloway – McLeod – Foegele
Janmark – Ryan – Brown
GagnerNurse – Ceci
Ekholm – Bouchard
Desharnais – KulakPickard
Skinner#Oilers— Tony Brar (@TonyBrarOTV) February 8, 2024
The big change is the second line. Knoblauch has opted to demote Warren Foegele back down to the third line and has brought up new addition Corey Perry to play alongside Leon Draisaitl and Evander Kane. Playing at the top of the lineup is nothing new for Perry, who did it for years with the Ducks, but it is an interesting turn for the 38-year-old at this point in his career.
The one thing that stands out from that trio is the lack of footspeed. All three of those players are not known for their wheels on the ice, and this could be a bit of a problem in the transition. However, between Draisaitl and Perry, there is more than enough playmaking ability to jumpstart a slumping Kane, who has just a single goal in his last 12 games.
The third line, which looked good with Perry over the last two games, will now consist of Dylan Holloway and Ryan McLeod being joined by Foegele on the left side. This was a line that many thought would start the season for the Oilers, but injuries to both Holloway and McLeod prevented them from getting much time together. It certainly has all the tools to be a successful line with lots of speed and skill. Perhaps Foegele’s blistering shot can help them finish more chances.
Other than that, the team’s first and fourth lines remain the same as they were.
The defensive pairs have also seen a bit of a shuffle. Brar later tweeted that the pairs in his initial tweet were swapped up and featured significant changes.
The D-Pairings seemed to have changed at practice.
Nurse – Desharnais
Ekholm – Ceci
Kulak – BouchardSaw multiple rotations early in the skate but in a set battle drill, these are the pairings being deployed. #Oilers https://t.co/CJhAj8KZlA
— Tony Brar (@TonyBrarOTV) February 8, 2024
It seems like Knoblauch is rewarding Vincent Desharnais for his stellar play of late. He moves up from the third pair to the top pair alongside Darnell Nurse. The dynamite pairing of Mattias Ekholm and Evan Bouchard has also been broken up. Ekholm will now slide down to the second pair to play alongside Cody Ceci, who has been underwhelming of late.
Lastly, in a strange move, Bouchard is now playing on the team’s bottom pair with Brett Kulak. The demotion is coming out of seemingly nowhere, as the team’s leading defensive scorer has been playing great hockey of late.
It may be a bit too early to read into where these pairings are slotted at the moment. How Knoblauch decides to deploy this group should shed some more light on what he is thinking.
Calvin Pickard looks like he will be giving Stuart Skinner the night off between the pipes against the Ducks.
Gametime in the OC is set for 8 pm MT tomorrow night on Sportsnet West.