Two of the NHL’s biggest names go head-to-head Monday night when the Pittsburgh Penguins take on the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place (630 CHED, Face-off Show at 4:30 p.m., game at 6 p.m.).
Sidney Crosby has racked up ten points in leading the Penguins to a 4-0-1 start. Connor McDavid also has ten points for the 2-3 Oilers.
“I’m not oblivious to that. I do think it is special,” said Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft of the hype surrounding the game. “I see a lot of similarities between his (Crosby’s) approach to the game and Connor’s approach to the game. I think that is exciting when they play against each other.”
“He’s been doing it right for a long time, on and off the ice,” said McDavid of Crosby. “He’s off to a great start again. He’s an unbelievable player and someone you can definitely look up to.”
Oilers defenceman Cody Ceci played for the Penguins in the 2020-2021 season.
“They’re both just so dominant. They can take over a game at any point. They both work extremely hard in the off-seasons and it shows. They’re both strong, strong players and they will be for as long as they’re playing,” Ceci observed.
The Oilers are hoping to find some consistency. They need a win to go .500 on their season-opening six-game homestand and were shutout by St. Louis on Saturday.
“I thought our game was a little bit spread out. I found out game has kind of been spread out through the first five,” explained McDavid. “We have to find ways to have more guys around the puck tonight.”
The Oilers expected lineup is:
Kane — McDavid — Yamamoto
Nugent-Hopkins — Draisaitl — Hyman
Foegele — McLeod — Puljujarvi
Shore — Ryan
Nurse — Ceci
Kulak — Barrie
Murray — Bouchard
Niemelainen
Campbell
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