Golden Knights Game 74, Win & In; Lines, Notes, & How to Watch vs Oilers

The Vegas Golden Knights (45-20-8) play the first of a two-game homestand. They’re fresh off sweeping their three-game road trip and have won six in a row. They host the injured Edmonton Oilers (42-26-5) tonight at T-Mobile Arena.

The puck drops just after 7 p.m.

The Golden Knights played back-to-back games last weekend. They completed a comeback against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday and beat the Nashville Predators 3-1 on Sunday. Adin Hill started both games and was stellar.

The Oilers, down Connor McDavid, Mattias Ekholm, and Stuart Skinner, are desperate for a win. They’re two points behind the Los Angeles Kings in the Pacific Division standings. The two teams are destined to meet in the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season, and the Oilers want home-ice advantage.

Adin Hill starts tonight against the Oilers. He has a record of 3-3-1 and an average save percentage of .900 in eight career games against the Oilers. Ilya Samsonov, who was a late scratch against the Nashville Predators on Sunday, is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Akira Schmid will back up tonight.

Calvin Pickard starts in net for the Oilers tonight. He has a record of 18-8-1 and an average save percentage of .899 in 30 games this season. Pickard has never started a game against the Golden Knights.

Golden Knights Lines

Ivan Barbashev-Jack Eichel-Mark Stone
Brandon Saad-Nic Roy-Pavel Dorofeyev
Victor Olofsson-William Karlsson-Reilly Smith
Tanner Pearson-Brett Howden-Keegan Kolesar

Defense

Brayden McNabb-Shea Theodore
Noah Hanifin-Zach Whitecloud
Nic Hague-Kaedan Korczak

Goaltenders: Adin Hill/Akira Schmid

Oilers Lines

Vasily Podkolzin–Leon Draisaitl–Viktor Arvidsson
Zach Hyman–Ryan Nugent-Hopkins–Kasperi Kapanen
Jeff Skinner–Mattias Janmark–Connor Brown
Max Jones–Adam Henrique–Corey Perry

Defense

Jake ​​Walman–Evan Bouchard 
Darnell Nurse–Troy Stecher
Brett Kulak–Ty Emberson

Goaltenders: Calvin Pickard/Olivier Rodrigue

Special Teams

Golden Knights power play: 30.8%, 1st. Golden Knights penalty kill: 75.5%, 24th.
Oilers power play: 25.3%, 8th. Oilers penalty kill: 76.9%, tied for 20th.

Golden Knights Game Notes

This is the fourth and final meeting between the Golden Knights and the Oilers this season. The Oilers won the most recent matchup, but the Golden Knights won the first two and lead the season series 2-1.

Mark Stone will play his 700th NHL game tonight. He has 231 goals and 633 points in 699 career games.

On Sunday, Reilly Smith scored his first goal since being reacquired by the Golden Knights. 

The NHL named Jack Eichel first star for the month of March. He had eight goals and 23 points in 14 games.

Eichel is on a six-game point streak, and has six goals and 13 points over that stretch.

Eichel, sitting at 93 points on the season, has eight goals and 21 points in 19 career games against the Oilers. He’s historically had success defensively containing Connor McDavid, but McDavid won’t play tonight due to injury.

Leon Draisaitl, who leads the league with 51 goals, has 12 goals and 30 points in 25 career games against the Golden Knights.

With a win tonight, the Golden Knights can clinch their seventh postseason berth in eight years. They are 27-7-3 at the Fortress this season; the Oilers are 19-14-2 on the road.

HOW TO WATCH

TV: Vegas 34
Radio: FOX Sports Las Vegas 98.9/1340