Jets at Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers hope their surplus of young talent finally will translate into a playoff appearance as they begin the 2013-14 season against the visiting Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday. After landing Sam Gagner and Jordan Eberle in the first round of the 2007 and 2008 drafts, respectively, Edmonton added to its offensive arsenal by snagging Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov with the first overall picks from 2010-12. However, the young stars have yet to lead the Oilers into the postseason as the club has not qualified for the playoffs since losing the seventh game of the 2006 Stanley Cup final to the Carolina Hurricanes.
Gagner (jaw) and Nugent-Hopkins (shoulder) are out indefinitely, leaving first-year coach Dallas Eakins without two of his biggest stars as he attempts to help Edmonton snap the longest current playoff drought in the league. Winnipeg has gone nearly as long without a postseason appearance, last qualifying in 2007 while known as the Atlanta Thrashers. The Jets begin their third season in Manitoba and first in the Western Conference, moving into the restructured Central Division after spending the last two campaigns in the Southeast.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, CBC
ABOUT THE JETS (2012-13: 24-21-3, 9th East): Winnipeg hopes the addition of Devin Setoguchi helps to improve the league's worst power play from a season ago, as the veteran has scored at least five man-advantage goals in four of the last five campaigns. The team's defense corps figures to be intact Tuesday, as Dustin Byfuglien (leg) and Zach Bogosian (undisclosed) both are expected to play. The Jets will be hard-pressed to end their playoff drought, as they join a division that consists of defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago, St. Louis and Minnesota.
ABOUT THE OILERS (2012-13: 19-22-7, 12th West): Nugent-Hopkins has plenty to prove once he returns from offseason surgery, as he scored only four goals in 40 games last season after netting 18 as a rookie in 2011-12. The Oilers' young guns received some help in the form of David Perron, who posted back-to-back 20-goal seasons with St. Louis before registering 10 tallies in 48 games last campaign. Edmonton native Andrew Ference signed a four-year contract as a free agent in July and was named the team's captain on Monday.
OVERTIME
1. Edmonton added some muscle to protect its young stars, claiming LWs Steve MacIntyre and Luke Gazdic off waivers from Pittsburgh and Dallas, respectively.
2. The Oilers will boast a pair of Actons on Tuesday, as Keith begins his tenure as associate coach and son Wil expected to make his NHL debut.
3. Winnipeg Fs Evander Kane (17), Andrew Ladd (18) and Blake Wheeler (19) combined to score 54 goals - 42.9 percent of the club's 126 tallies - last season.