Game Thread: Oilers at Kings - This Could Get Ugly

When the Oilers skate ono the ice at the Staples Center tonight they will do so without Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle, and Jeff Petry. The first two will sit out tonight's contest to allow some of the bumps and bruises acquired during the first two games of the season to heal, and Petry will sit out tonight as a healthy scratch.

Now to the untrained eye this might seem like an odd decision by Dallas Eakins but in reality this is masterful piece of strategy, one that will surely lure the defending Stanley Cup into a false sense of security, and that's when the Oilers will attack. Of course it still won't matter because the Kings are still the far superior team, but this is the kind of outside the box thinking that results in bottom five finish after bottom five finish.

How To Tune In

Are you sure you want to? Alright, 8:30PM on Sportsnet 360.

What To Watch For With The Oilers

Don't. Just cover your eyes and hope it ends soon. The Oilers' centres tonight who aren't name Boyd Gordon have a combined 46 games of NHL experience. 46. And the defence is no better. Brad Hunt and Justin Schultz as the top pair? Really? On an NHL team? Good luck with that. Combine the two and, well, just be happy you're not the Oilers goalie tonight.

What To Watch For With The Kings

From Battle of California:

The Kings have lost two games, but not in their typical "out shoot the opponent 100-5 and lose 2-1" fashion. Instead their two losses have featured them looking like crap. And that's bad. But they won their last game! That's good. Though the only line still really scoring is Carter and the kids. That's bad. But they are scoring at a pace of 150 goals between them! And that's good, though completely unsustainable.

Luckily for the a terrible Oilers team should be just what they need to get back on track.

Projected Lineups

Edmonton Oilers

Taylor Hall - Mark Arcobello - Teddy Purcell
David Perron - Bogdan Yakimov - Jesse Joensuu
Benoit Pouliot - Leon Draisaitl - Nail Yakupov
Matt Hendricks - Boyd Gordon - Will Acton

Brad Hunt - Justin Schultz
Andrew Ference - Darnell Nurse
Nikita Nikitin - Mark Fayne

Viktor Fasth

Los Angeles Kings

Mike Richards - Anze Kopitar - Justin Williams
Tanner Pearson - Jeff Carter - Tyler Toffoli
Dwight King - Jarret Stoll - Dustin Brown
Kyle Clifford - Andy Andreoff - Jordan Nolan

Brayden McNabb - Drew Doughty
Robyn Regehr - Slava Voynov
Alec Martinez - Matt Greene

Jonathan Quick

Final Thoughts

• What the hell is this?
• No seriously, what the hell is this?