Oilers at Ducks
Edmonton Oilers workhorse goaltender Cam Talbot and versatile forward Leon Draisaitl are putting their best foot forward as they continue to march through what is amounting to a career season for both of them. They look to continue both their respective good fortune of late as well as their season-long dominance against the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday when the Pacific Division rivals clash at the Honda Center.
Talbot, who made 26 saves in a 4-0 victory over Anaheim on Jan. 25, recorded his second straight shutout with 35 saves on Monday as Edmonton posted its fourth straight win with a 2-0 triumph over Los Angeles. "Cam has been great for us all year," captain Connor McDavid said of the 29-year-old Talbot, whose seven shutouts are the most for an Oilers goaltender since Tommy Salo had eight in 2000-01 and his 37 wins are three shy of matching the single-season record of Hall of Famer Grant Fuhr in 1987-88. Edmonton has won two of the three meetings this season with Anaheim, however, the clubs find themselves tied for second place in the Pacific with red-hot Calgary residing one point behind. The Ducks aren't doing too badly for themselves with points in six of their last seven games (5-1-1), including victories over division leaders Chicago, Washington and San Jose highlighting that stretch.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, Sportsnet West (Edmonton), Prime (Anaheim), NHL.TV
ABOUT THE OILERS (39-24-9): Draisaitl recorded his fourth straight multi-point performance (one goal, eight assists) by setting up a pair of goals versus the Kings and looks for more of the same when he faces off against Anaheim. The 21-year-old German has drilled the Ducks this season, scoring his team's lone goal in a 4-1 setback on Nov. 15, converting in overtime in a 3-2 win on Dec. 3 and tallying twice in the most recent meeting. McDavid (team-leading 25 goals, 57 assists, 82 points) has been limited to just one assist against Anaheim, but has seven points (two goals, five assists) during his current four-game point streak and 21 (seven goals, 14 assists) in his last 16 contests overall.
ABOUT THE DUCKS (38-23-11): Captain Ryan Getzlaf recorded his 20th point (six goals, 14 assists) in 16 games and 800th career with his team-leading 45th assist in Saturday's 2-1 triumph over the Sharks. Rickard Rakell had an assist versus San Jose to extend his point streak to five games (four goals, one assist) and scored one of his club-best 31 goals in the overtime loss to the Oilers. "Most of the games we have left are divisional games, and we not only want to make our team ready for the next step, but we also want to make a statement to the other teams we're playing," the 23-year-old Swede said. "We have to treat it like a playoff game."
OVERTIME
1. Anaheim's Jonathan Bernier, who owns a 7-2-1 mark with a slim 1.78 goals-against average and .943 save percentage in his last 10 outings, and is expected to get the nod Tuesday with fellow G John Gibson nursing a lower-body injury.
2. Edmonton is 6-for-14 on the power play during its winning streak.
3. Current Duck and former Oilers F Andrew Cogliano is expected to play in his 777th consecutive game, moving into sole possession of fourth place for the longest streak in NHL history.