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Can you believe that it's been 146 days since four little balls were drawn and the course of the Oilers franchise was instantly changed? Yeah, neither can I. From the draft lottery win, to front office changes, the hiring of a new coach, and a couple free agent acquisitions, it's been a busy summer for fans of the Oilers. But as much fun as we've all had without hockey, I think it's just about time that we get back to watching hockey again, and tonight, finally, we get a chance to do just that as the puck drops on the annual Young Stars tournament in Penticton.
But let's watch this one more time first, just because. Thanks for the gif, @MikeFromYEG.
Schedule
Game 1: Calgary vs. Winnipeg - Sept. 11 5:00pm
Game 2: Vancouver vs. Edmonton - Sept. 11 8:30pm
Game 3: Calgary vs. Edmonton - Sept. 12 8:30pm
Game 4: Vancouver vs. Winnipeg - Sept. 13 3:00pm
Game 5: Edmonton vs. Winnipeg - Sept. 14 12:30pm
Game 6: Vancouver vs. Calgary - Sept. 14 4:30pm
Note: All times are MST.
How To Watch
All three of the Oilers games will be carried on the team's website and on thier mobile app; if you're away from a computer you can tune into 630 CHED for all the action. The other teams will also be carry games on their websites if you want to the Canucks and Flames for some strange reason.
Rosters
From each team's website, these are the most up to date roster available. Obviously they are subject to change.
| OILERS | CANUCKS | FLAMES | JETS | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FORWADS | |||||||
| 29 | LEON DRAISAITL | 49 | RODRIGO ABOLS | 51 | KENNY AGOSTINO | 38 | NIC PETAN |
| 37 | JOSH WINQUIST | 52 | COLE CASSELS | 46 | BILL ARNOLD | 42 | NIKOLAJ EHLERS |
| 42 | ANTON SLEPYSHEV | 45 | DANE FOX | 47 | TYSON BAILLIE | 45 | JIMMY LODGE |
| 43 | ALEXIS LOISEAU | 68 | REID GARDINER | 93 | SAM BENNETT | 48 | BRENDAN LEMIEUX |
| 44 | MARCO ROY | 50 | BRENDAN GAUNCE | 86 | TAYLOR BURKE | 51 | ANDREW COPP |
| 45 | COLE LINAKER | 62 | JOE LABATE | 62 | AUSTIN CARROLL | 56 | JANSEN HARKINS |
| 46 | RIHARDS BUKARTS | 70 | JONATHON MARTIN | 89 | PAVEL KARNAUKHOV | 65 | AXEL BLOMQVIST |
| 47 | CONNOR RANKIN | 47 | JARED MCCANN | 45 | MORGAN KLIMCHUK | 68 | RYAN OLSEN |
| 53 | MITCH MOROZ | 79 | KYLE PETTIT | 88 | ANDREW MANGIAPANE | 72 | SCOTT KOSMACHUK |
| 59 | COLE SANFORD | 48 | HUNTER SHINKARUK | 87 | MASON MARCHMENT | 77 | CHASE DE LEO |
| 61 | BRADEN CHRISTOFFER | 71 | MACKENZE STEWART | 85 | LOUICK MARCOTTE | 80 | MICHAEL SPACEK |
| 64 | TYLER SOY | 77 | JAKE VIRTANEN | 56 | RYAN LOMBERG | 89 | MATTEO GENNARO |
| 71 | KYLE PLATZER | 40 | MIKE ZALEWSKI | 28 | EMILE POIRIER | 91 | JIRI FRONK |
| 72 | GREG CHASE | 80 | DMITRY ZHUKENOV | 91 | JULIEN PROULX | ||
| 97 | CONNOR MCDAVID | 71 | HUNTER SMITH | ||||
| 59 | TOMAS SOUSTAL | ||||||
| 48 | BRYCE VAN BRABANT | ||||||
| DEFENCE | |||||||
| 25 | DARNELL NURSE | 54 | GUILLAUME BRISEBOIS | 54 | RASMUS ANDERSSON | 36 | JOSH MORRISSEY |
| 73 | KEVIN DAVIS | 57 | ANTON CEDERHOLM | 75 | JASON BELL | 53 | JAN KOSTALEK |
| 74 | ETHAN BEAR | 60 | BEN HUTTON | 98 | RILEY BRUCE | 62 | NELSON NOGIER |
| 75 | COLTON WALTZ | 61 | EVAN MCENENY | 63 | RYAN CULKIN | 81 | BRENNAN SERVILLE |
| 76 | BEN BETKER | 65 | CARL NEILL | 81 | JASON FRAM | 84 | PETER STOYKEWYCH |
| 81 | CALEB JONES | 64 | TATE OLSON | 73 | KEEGAN KANZIG | 86 | AARON HARSTAD |
| 84 | JOEY LALEGGIA | 59 | ASHTON SAUTNER | 61 | BRETT KULAK | 90 | MARCUS KARLSTROM |
| 89 | LOIK LEVEILLE | 67 | JORDAN SUBBAN | 58 | OLIVER KYLINGTON | ||
| 52 | KENNEY MORRISON | ||||||
| 84 | ERIC ROY | ||||||
| 50 | PATRICK SIELOFF | ||||||
| GOALIES | |||||||
| 34 | JORDAN PAPIRNY | 75 | JACKSON WHISTLE | 36 | JON GILLIES | 30 | CONNOR HELLEBUYCK |
| 35 | EETU LAURIKAINEN | 76 | CLAY WITT | 72 | MASON MCDONALD | 60 | ERIC COMRIE |
| 40 | KEVEN BOUCHARD | 70 | NICK SCHNEIDER | ||||
Who To Watch
You don't need to be told to watch McDavid, Nurse or Draisaitl, do you? Those three are going to get a lot of attention from Oilers fans (and maybe from jealous fans of other teams as well, Calgary, I'm looking in your direction) but there are a couple of other players that are worth keeping an eye on this weekend. In an effort to be diplomatic I'll pick one forward, one defenceman, and one goalie worth watching over the next for days.
Must Reads
Anton Slepyshev (#15 in the Top 25) - We've heard about his offensive skill but we've also seen him post some lacklustre numbers. Ice time is likely part of that, unfortunately from a distance it's been hard to really get a feel for where Slepyshev is at as a prospect. Now that's he's arrived in North America that should change in a hurry, starting this weekend.
Joey LaLeggia (#23 in the Top 25): After a season that saw him earn numerous NCAA accolades including Hobey Baker Finalist, the 5'9" defender cracked our ranking of the Top 25 Under 25 for the first time. A solid career and one that turned a few heads, but now that he's turned we have to wonder how his offensive skills will translate to the pro game and whether or not his size will be an issue?
Eetu Laurikainen (Not ranked in the Top 25): There aren't many goalies in the world that I like, and I like goalie prospects even less because, as best as I can tell, goalie development requires a significant amount of black magic. So why then should you keep and eye on Laurikainen this weekend? Well, because he's Finnish is a good enough reason for me. The Oilers could always use another Finn or two on the team, and it wouldn't hurt if they could find another solid goalie prospect for their system, maybe someday those two paths will cross. Maybe with Laurikainen.