Oilers' new coach Knoblauch shakes up team's lines ahead of his first game in charge
The Kris Knoblauch era is set to officially begin for the Edmonton Oilers on Monday night — and he’s putting his stamp on the team already.
The team’s new head coach hit the ice today with his roster for his first morning skate with the Oilers ahead of their 6:30 pm MT matchup with the New York Islanders, and he’s already decided to shake things up.
With the Oilers sitting 31st in the league standings through 13 games, Knoblauch couldn’t be facing more pressure in his first NHL head coaching gig.
Most notably, Knoblauch opted to split up top forwards Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, who played 13:43 together on Saturday night in Edmonton’s 4-1 win over Seattle, the last of Jay Woodcroft’s career with the team before he was axed on Sunday.
Here’s what the team’s forwards looked like at today’s morning skate, per NHL.com:
- Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Connor McDavid – Sam Gagner
- Evander Kane – Leon Draisaitl – Zach Hyman
- Dylan Holloway – Ryan McLeod – Warren Foegele
- Raphael Lavoie – James Hamblin – Derek Ryan
Meanwhile, here’s how Knoblauch’s defence lined up:
- Darnell Nurse – Cody Ceci
- Mattias Ekholm – Evan Bouchard
- Brett Kulak – Vincent Desharnais
Stuart Skinner is projected to start for the Oilers, with Calvin Pickard backing him up.
A native of Imperial, Saskatchewan, Knoblauch spent two seasons with the now-defunct Edmonton Ice junior team in the WHL back in 1996-97 and 1997-98 before the team moved to Kootenay.
“As for this opportunity, it’s an unbelievable opportunity. It’s been a crazy 24 hours for me,” Knoblauch said Sunday at his introductory press conference on Sunday. “We have a lot of friends here. The fact that I have this opportunity to be here with the Oilers back in Edmonton is really exciting for me.”
Knoblauch also expects more lineup changes throughout the early stages of his tenure with the Oilers.
“I have my opinions and I certainly want to hear theirs, but I also want to reach out and talk to the players – veterans and young players – and get their perspective and let them know what I’m expecting from them,” Knoblauch added Sunday. “Ultimately, I see a very talented team underperforming. That’s why I’m here. But ultimately, I’m trying to build something and we can obviously have the success that was anticipated at the beginning of the year.”
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