Edmonton (16-10-2) is third in the Pacific Division and won its third straight Tuesday. The Oilers have won seven of their past nine games.
Yet, as successful as they’ve been of late, traditionally things have not gone well for the Oilers in Minnesota; they’ve lost their past six games in regulation there, dating back to the 2019-20 season. Thursday marks the first of two games for Edmonton at the Wild this season.
“They have a good combination of speed and skill, and they also have the strength and size on their team too,” Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse said. “It’s going to be a hard game in the trenches, in the corners, at the front of the net. And on top of that, you have to deal with their skill and their speed too.”
Kaprizov leads the Wild offensively but has a strong supporting cast around him. Boldy has 28 points (12 goals, 16 assists) in 28 games; Rossi has 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 28 games.
“Every team has a team that when they face-off against, it’s a challenge and they’re a good team,” Nurse said. “Since I’ve been here (2015-16), no matter where they are in the standings it’s a tough, hard-fought game. They’re always tough in front of their net, hard in front of their net, and they have an element of skill too.”
The Oilers feel their defensive game has improved since a 2-4-1 start to the season. They were able to limit Lightning star forward Nikita Kucherov to one assist Tuesday and will face a similar challenge against Kaprizov.
“I think they’re very similar players, 5-on-5 especially,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “They protect the puck and like to find guys coming in late. They’re very dangerous.
“It’s going to be a big task for us. I think the best way for us to do that is to play solid defense with the five guys that are on the ice. It’s really important, if you want to keep those guys off the score sheet, you have to keep them in their defensive zone as much as possible.”
