Heading into this season, there was a lot of talk about the possibility for new rivalries.
Because teams would be playing an absurd number of games against the same teams, and in some instance two or more games in a row, the animosity would build. The intensity on the ice would be dialed up and it would lead to a more entertaining product on the ice.
Sure, there has been some of that. The ol’ duck and cover routine from Leon Draisaitl proved as much last night.
What I did not expect is how quickly I would learn to hate teams I had previously ignored. Go ahead and add the Edmonton Oilers to that list. Losing to the same team eight times in a row will do that, I suppose.
In fact, the very thought of watching the soulless gaze of Connor McDavid for another sixty minutes later this evening is already filling me with a surprising amount of rage.
It’s game day! Senators and Oilers one more time from the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa. And this time, it’s PERSONAL. For me, anyway.
No game day skate today but DJ Smith met with the media moments ago and outlined a few changes to the lineup. Erik Brannstrom, Erik Gudbranson and Mike Amadio are all in. Josh Brown, Braydon Coburn and one of the forwards will come out.
Tkachuk-Norris-Paul
Stützle-Tierney-Batherson
Dzingel-Bishop-C. Brown
Formenton-Anisimov-Dadonov
Amadio
Chabot-Zaitsev
Reilly-Zub
Brannstrom-Gudbranson
No word on a goalie yet.
Puck drop is scheduled for a more conventional 7:00 PM tonight. The game is available on TSN5, Sportsnet West, RDS, TSN1200 and blah blah blah blah nobody is even reading this part.
Here’s a closer look at how these two team’s match-up, as though the last eight games wasn’t clear enough.
| HEAD2HEAD |  |
 |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 24-14-2 (50 pts) | 13-23-4 (30 pts) |
| Goals For | 3.28 (T-5th) | 2.60 (24th) |
| Goals Against | 2.85 (15th) | 3.73 (31st) |
| Power Play | 26.6% (2nd) | 15.0% (26th) |
| Penalty Kill | 78.8% (17th) | 76.6% (22nd) |
| Shots For | 30.2 (10th) | 31.1 (7th) |
| Shots Against | 30.9 (18th) | 32.9 (29th) |
| Leading Scorers | McDavid- 68 pts Draisaitl- 61 pts Barrie- 34 pts RNH- 28 pts Nurse- 28 pts |
Chabot- 24 pts Tkachuk- 24 pts Batherson- 23 pts Brown- 21 pts Norris- 21 pts |
| Starting Goalie | TBD | TBD |
