Oilers at Flames
THE STORY: As exciting as the Edmonton Oilers have been so far this season, fans have to be irked at the team's penchant for inconsistency. Which Edmonton team shows up Saturday night is anyone's guess as the Oilers resume the Battle of Alberta with a road date against the Calgary Flames. Edmonton looked overmatched in consecutive losses to the Flames and Carolina Hurricanes – two teams below them in the standings – before breaking out with a pair of power-play goals on the way to a 4-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Friday night. Sam Gagner was the unlikely hero against the Avs, scoring his second and third goals of the season as the Oilers won for just the second time in seven games. The Flames have won three of four to move to the .500 mark for the first time this season. Calgary has seven straight wins over Edmonton dating to last season.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, CBC
ABOUT THE OILERS (14-12-3): Those looking to make some money may want to invest in some Ryan Nugent-Hopkins rookie cards. The 18-year-old continues to make the NHL look easy, dishing out a pair of assists in the win over Colorado. That extended his points streak to six games while giving him 32 points for the season. He's on pace to record the highest rookie point total since Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin had 85 in 2006-07.
ABOUT THE FLAMES (13-13-2): It's been a long time since Brendan Morrison has contributed on the offensive end. The veteran center has two goals and four assists over his last two games, leading the Flames to a pair of narrow victories. Morrison had just one point over his first 10 games, and at 36 his best offensive days are clearly behind him. Morrison is no stranger to the Oilers, recording 18 goals and 20 assists in 55 career games against them.
OVERTIME:
1. The Flames are 0-2 in overtime and shootout games this season, joining Carolina (0-4) and the Islanders (0-6) as the only teams without an extra-time victory.
2. Nugent-Hopkins was named NHL rookie of the month for October and November, and he's off to a good start in December with two goals and three assists in four games.
3. Flames backup netminder Leland Irving will likely make his NHL debut next week, with the club playing Tampa Bay and Florida on consecutive nights.