Ken Hitchcock will coach his first home game with the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night when they face the Dallas Stars and he says he doesn’t want to disappoint Oilers fans he’s known over the years.
Hitchcock spent the early days of his coaching career leading a midget AAA team in Sherwood Park.
“I spent 12 years in Sherwood Park and I went through a lot of hockey players,” Hitchcock said on Tuesday. “I know who are the suite holders, who are the season-ticket holders, and I know they live and die with the Oilers. That’s the pressure for me, it’s those guys.
“They put me in a spot where I could make a living at the game. I just ran into Bob Green (the Oilers’ director of player personnel) and he gave me a list of who’s rolling in,” Hitchcock added. “It’s a big deal for them and so it’s a big deal for me. That’s the one part that makes me nervous.
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“I don’t want to let that group down because they gave me a lot of success for a long period of time.”
Hitchcock is 1-1-1 since taking over from Todd McLellan as the Oilers’ head coach. Like McLellan, Hitchcock is trying to find more scoring. Alex Chiasson will become the latest player to get a look on the top line with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
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Hitchcock said the days of having a checking line in the NHL are in the past and teams nowadays will match top line against top line which makes Chiasson valuable.
“We need a guy that can win board battles, can maintain possession of the puck, and that can open up space at the top of the zone for a guy like Connor or Leon, especially Connor,” Hitchcock said. “We need that type of presence and we need a guy that’s going to keep the puck in the zone because he’s so strong on it.
“You look at the hard matches and it’s just power on power and then let play out from there.”
Jesse Puljujarvi, who played just 7:43 Sunday in L.A. after getting recalled from Bakersfield, will play on the second line. The Oilers’ expected lineup is:
Chiasson – McDavid – Draisaitl
Caggiula – Nugent-Hopkins – Puljujarvi
Lucic – Brodziak – Kassian
Khaira – Spooner – P. Russell
Klefbom – Larsson
Nurse – K. Russell
Garrison – Benning
Koskinen
Catch the Oilers and Stars on 630 CHED with the Faceoff Show at 5:30 p.m. The game starts at 7 p.m.
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