Zack Kassian is a big part of the recent history of the Battle of Alberta. Now the Edmonton Oilers forward gets to live it in the playoffs with Game 1 of the series Wednesday in Calgary.
“It’s pretty exciting,” the 31-year-old said. “I know everyone is looking forward to it. Two really good teams just got out of two really hard-fought series. It’s not only big for the teams, it’s big for the province.
“It’s probably the biggest series I’ve personally ever played in. I’m really looking forward to it.”
In January 2020, Kassian was suspended for two games for going after Calgary Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk. The two players then fought in a game later that month. However, Kassian wasn’t going to add any fuel to the fire when asked about Tkachuk after Tuesday’s practice.
“He’s a good player,” Kassian said.
“He’s going to do his thing. We’re going to do our thing.”
Kassian’s ability to play a physical game and grind away down low in the offensive zone could play a key role in the series. Oilers winger Zach Hyman expects to be involved in many hard battles with Flames defencemen.
“Who wants it more — who wants the puck more. You don’t have to be the biggest guy to go in the corners and get the puck,” Hyman said. “You have to be hard on your stick. You have to want the puck. You have to go into areas. You have to be first on the puck.
“There are tons of different things. It’s not just about how big you are.”
“I think both teams play the game fairly similarly,” said Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft.
“In the end, it’s going to come down to who wants to play harder and who wants to do it for longer.”
On Tuesday afternoon, the Oilers called up seven players from the Bakersfield Condors: Stuart Skinner, Philip Broberg, Markus Niemelainen, Dmitri Samorukov, Dylan Holloway, Seth Griffith and Brad Malone.
You can listen to live coverage of Game 1 on Wednesday on 630 CHED, beginning with The Faceoff Show at 5:30 p.m. The actual game starts at 7:30 p.m.
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