The tinkering continues for the Edmonton Oilers as they look to find the right mix in their forward group.
During a Friday practice ahead of Saturday’s matinee game against the Dallas Stars, Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch elevated Mattias Janmark to the second line alongside Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Viktor Arvidsson. Vasily Podkolzin, who skated in that spot for the last number of games, have been dropped down to the fourth-line left wing.
“He’s just been so solid and we saw how he elevated his game in the playoffs,” Knoblauch said via the Oilers website. “Coming back, he’s a guy that can move up and down the lineup. Guys with skill like to play with him just because he can get them the puck. He’s defensively reliable, but also down in the lineup, he can move just as well in a checking role; a little more grit and sandpaper getting to the net.
“So as a coach, somebody you really appreciate.”
Stuart Skinner drew back into the starters crease, looking to rebound from regular season struggles against the Stars in the past. He’s played four games against them, posting a 2-2 record, a 3.03 GAA and a .894 save percentage, but his playoff numbers last year? Excellent.
In six games, Skinner went 4-2, posting a 1.91 GAA and a .922 save percentage. He allowed two or fewer goals against in five of those games, allowing four in Game 3 of last year’s Western Conference Finals.
Janmark, meanwhile, will look to provide some jump to the second line, which has had a slow start to the season. There’s a sample size of just 30 minutes of five-on-five time with Nugent-Hopkins and Arvidsson skating together, but the Oilers have struggled in them, controlling just 45 percent of the shot attempt share, 45.6 percent of the expected goal share and 42 percent of the scoring chance share. Their saving grace is they’ve yet to be scored on, playing low event hockey, but they also aren’t generating anything offensively.
