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Flyers @ Oilers Game 72 Preview

Will Taylor Hall make his return to the lineup tonight?

By Jeff Chapman
Maybe today?
Maybe today?
Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports


flyers

@
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29-29-15, 73 points, 1 p/g Ranks 19-39-13, 51 points, .714 p/g
Eastern Conference - 12th Western Conference - 13th
24th P/G 28th
20th ST 25th
22nd ES 28th
22nd Goal 30th
8 PM MDT - CBC
Rexall Place
The opposing view: Broad Street Hockey

Second verse, same as the first

The Oilers had 47 shots against Columbus on Wednesday night, yet still found a way to embrace defeat.  Consistency is key, boys.  Columbus rattled off twenty, yet took two points in another shootout against and Oiler club who simply cannot win.  Derek Roy had a power play goal for the Oilers, while Nail Yakupov had a goal and an assist, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored his twentieth of the season for the first time in his career.

The Oilers had 18 shots in the third period.  Think of the games where the Oilers couldn't manage eighteen shots in a game.

There's a real possibility that Taylor Hall returns to the lineup tonight, so we've got that going for us.  Let's see who's saying what.

The Oilers are saying

"Right now, we haven't made a concrete decision on where he'll play. He was playing with Anton (Lander) today.  That's something we'll discuss as a group.  First and foremost we have to make sure he's 100 percent healthy"

That's Oilers interim head coach Todd Nelson on the possibility of Taylor Hall returning to the lineup today.

Here's a wacky idea, Coach.  The top line.

Hall was on a line with Anton Lander and Curtis Hamilton in practice yesterday, which isn't in my top three line combinations in which Taylor Hall would return.

The Opponent is saying

"There's nine games left and we're going to play as a team and stick together here.  We put the Flyers logo on our chest and we have to wear it proudly and play hard"
That's Flyers captain Claude Giroux on playing out the string.

If the Flyers run the table, they'll have 91 points, which isn't going to get it done.  Rather unfortunate is the season that Flyers goaltender Steve Mason (.925 SV%) has put together.  Oh well.  We'll see you guys at the draft table.  I mean, we'll be there a lot earlier than you guys will, but you get the idea.  Shut up.

Have some of this
  • YAK KEEPS ROLLIN' - When your club is a garbage truck for another season, sometimes it's difficult to find a story you want to latch onto.  Nail Yakupov's resurgence has been one of the fun stories to watch, and it might be the reason (right or wrong) that the Oilers end up keeping Todd Nelson as the team's head coach for longer than this year.   Two more points for Nail Yakupov give him 15 (6-9-15) in his last seventeen games.  It's also good business for Derek Roy.
  • Ben Scrivens (13-23-9, .897 SV% / 2.96) will likely get the start for the Oilers tonight, while Steve Mason (14-17-10, .925 SV% / 2.28) would be my choice for the Flyers.  Travis Hughes of Broad Street Hockey wrote a nice piece about how Flyers head coach Craig Berube might not be a big fan of Steve Mason. Mason has been a valuable piece to the Flyers over the past two seasons.  I wonder if Craig Berube is aware of this.

#progress

  • PLAYING OUT THE STRING

    • Noah Hanifin territory?

  • GOILERS