Flyers continue their road trip and visit the winless Oilers

The game: 10 p.m. ET, ESPN, 93.3 WMMR

This is a far too familiar story. Some team is on a losing streak, has a huge losing streak, and then they face the Philadelphia Flyers and the direction changes for them. Just last year, the San Jose Sharks approached record losing levels early in the season. There were no wins in their first few games, no matter how many there were, but they faced the Flyers for the first time this year and were able to escape with two points.

And now the Flyers visit Edmonton to take on an Oilers team that still hasn't won. After reaching the Stanley Cup Final and being predicted by almost every national reporter to become champions in 2024-25, the Oilers started the season 0-3-0. Zero points in the first 3.6 percent of their season. This is just ripe for the picking.

The Oilers are an offensive force that relies heavily on their power play, and the Flyers have had serious penalty problems in the first two games. So far, the Flyers have conceded a total of 10 minor penalties in just two games – if they allow the Oilers five power play opportunities, they'll likely lose by five goals or more. McDavid and Draisaitl will eat into the hearts of every undermanned unit on the Flyers, i.e. the Flyers desperate They need to stay out of the penalty area if they have any chance of leaving Alberta with more points.

Perhaps the only positive thing to think about is that the Flyers have more depth than the Oilers currently have and generally have better overall speed. Of course, no one is faking McDavid's performance, but when you look at the full roster, you have to have more confidence in the Flyers' overall ability.

Additionally, it will be interesting to see some lineup changes and players back on the ice for our Flyers.

Players to watch

Jett Luchanko

The prospect (except for Matvei Michkov) that we won't be able to tear ourselves away. Luchanko was extremely impressive throughout training camp and in the season opener in Vancouver, not looking out of place and even could have scored had he not been robbed. Because he was just so young and inexperienced, the coaching staff gave him back-to-back days off for the second half of the opening, but he should be on the roster tonight in Edmonton.

And where he plays is even more interesting. Previously, he was on the “third line” between Joel Farabee and Bobby Brink, representing a young threat. Now Sean Couturier is down there to add some maturity to those young wingers in the middle, and Luchanko is in with Tyson Foerster and Travis Konecny ​​​​— two of the best wingers the Flyers can offer.

This trio should be incredibly interesting to watch. Luchanko is quicker and more agile than those two guys, but Foerster can work the boards and retrieve pucks very well, while Konecny ​​​​could essentially be a trigger man in this unit. Essentially, Luchanko can be a kind of quick engine in the middle and do heavy work for the wingers who have more offensive ability than him at the moment.

It looks like he won't be going anywhere anytime soon with the way he's in the lineup.

Jamie Drysdale

The team and the player need this season to be a success for Jamie Drysdale. And so far it's been disappointing. Zero points in the first two games and if you dig even deeper the situation is even worse – only three shot attempts, one shot on goal and at 5v5 he was absolutely killed on the ice with a CF% of 36.36. and 27.07 xGF%. Those are brutal numbers from a blueliner who is supposed to be a playdriver.

Let's just hope he can play more and have some good games there. Luckily, the Oilers' bottom-six forwards and blue line aren't so light on their feet, and you can easily imagine Drysdale charging over the boards and past many home jerseys to set up a goal. Hopefully that happens tonight.

The Michkov, Tippett and Frost Line

We've already mentioned that Luchanko is playing on a new line and Couturier is moving down to provide some stability for two attacking wingers, but what about the top line? We're back to the trio we saw in preseason and who had some success in these friendlies.

Morgan Frost in the middle, Owen Tippett on the left and Matvei Michkov back to his natural right wing. This trio looked excellent heading into the season – Frost was able to make some plays and keep up with Michkov mentally just enough to capitalize on the Russian phenom's own playmaking, and Tippett was able to race through the zone with possession to generate attacking pressure. Those two along with Michkov should provide some of the offense that was sorely missed in Calgary, and it will certainly be nice to see the 19-year-old winger much more comfortable in his natural position. If they score even one goal, we should see them together for a while.

Planned lineups

Philadelphia Flyers

Owen Tippett – Morgan Frost – Matvei Michkov
Tyson Foerster – Jett Luchanko – Travis Konecny
Joel Farabee – Sean Couturier – Bobby Brink
Noah Cates-Scott Laughton-Garnet Hathaway

Cam York-Travis Sanheim
Erik Johnson-Jamie Drysdale
Egor Zamula – Rasmus Ristolainen

Sam Ersson
(Ivan Fedotov)

Edmonton Oilers

Jeff Skinner – Connor McDavid – Zach Hyman
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Leon Draisaitl – Victor Arvidsson
Vasily Podkolzin – Adam Henrique – Connor Brown
Mattias Janmark – Derek Ryan – Corey Perry

Mattias Ekholm – Evan Bouchard
Darnell Nurse – Travis Dermott
Brett Kulak – Troy Stecher

Stuart Skinner
(Calvin Pickard)