Oilers at Lightning
The Edmonton Oilers go after their fourth consecutive victory when they continue a six-game road trip against the surging Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday night. The Oilers opened their trek with a 3-1 victory at Chicago on Saturday despite being outshot 39-22 as goaltender Cam Talbot earned his 30th victory of the season.
“We were fortunate,” Edmonton coach Todd McLellan told reporters after the win. “I don’t think there’s any other way to put it. I’m happy that we got the points and two weeks from now nobody is going to ask how it happened, but (playing the way we did) catches up with you.” Connor McDavid, the league’s leading scorer with 67 points, makes his first visit to Tampa Bay after missing last season’s trip with an injury but had the deciding shootout goal in the 3-2 home win over the Lightning on Dec. 17. Tampa Bay is enjoying a season-high six-game point streak (4-0-2) and hopes to make up ground in the crowded Eastern Conference playoff race with 14 of the next 20 games on home ice. Defenseman Victor Hedman is warming up for the Lightning with three goals and three assists in the last three contests.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, Sportsnet West (Edmonton), FSN Sun (Tampa Bay)
ABOUT THE OILERS (32-19-8): McDavid is warming up again with two goals and five assists with a plus-6 rating in the last four contests while fellow forward Leon Draisaitl boasts five points during the three-game win streak. Draisaitl owns 52 points overall and holds a big lead for second on the team over wing Jordan Eberle (35), who has three in the last two outings. Talbot continues to shine in net with a .927 save percentage in seven starts this month and is 30-16-7 with a 2.35 goals-against average overall, playing the most games of any goalie in the league (53).
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (26-24-8): Coach Jon Cooper put the “triplets’ line” of Ondrej Palat, Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov back together in Sunday’s 3-2 overtime victory over Colorado and the trio had a goal overturned while collecting 14 shots on goal. Kucherov, who leads the team with 49 points, has been kept off the scoresheet in four straight games but was snake bit with a career-high nine shots Sunday. Fellow forward Jonathan Drouin notched his 17th goal with a brilliant solo effort to beat Colorado as goalie Ben Bishop told reporters: “He was a man on a mission.”
OVERTIME
1. Tampa Bay C Brayden Point boasts five of his eight goals on the season in eight games since returning from an upper-body injury.
2. Edmonton D Kris Russell (groin) could return to the lineup Tuesday after a five-game absence.
3. Bishop allowed five goals in his last four games (4-0-0) with a .953 save percentage in that span.