Game 54: Edmonton Oilers at Minnesota Wild - Xcel Energy Center - Februar 4, 2010 - 6:00 PM - SNET

The Minnesota Wild (27-25-4) host the Edmonton Oilers (18-31-6) at the Xcel Energy Center tonight. This season, the season series is currently tied with the Oilers winning Game 7 by a score of 5-2 while the Wild won the most recent game (Game 37) by a score of 3-1. The Oilers have ended their 13-game winless streak with two-consecutive wins against the Carolina Hurricanes and Philadelphia Flyers. Last night, Ryan Potulny scored the game-winning goal against his former team.

The Olympic Roster Freeze will being at midnight on Friday, February 12th and end at midnight Sunday February 28th, 2010. Speaking of the Olympics, Columbus Blue Jackets coach, Ken Hitchcock, was fired yesterday. He'll still be working with Team Canada at the upcoming 2010 Olympics. I've always like the 'Hitch' as a coach and would have under different circumstances liked to have seen him coach the Oilers.

So far, the Calgary Flames and Toronto Maple Leafs have been the most active teams heading into the Olympic Roster Freeze. As well, the New York Rangers and Anaheim Might Ducks have been involved in making roster changes too. The Edmonton Oilers are still rumored to be shopping a number of vets like Ethan Moreau, but it doesn't seem that there's a huge demand. By tomorrow, we may head that Ilya Kovalchuk's been traded by the Atlanta Thrashers. From Darren Dreger, it sounds like five or more teams are still in the mix for the Kovalchuk sweepstakes. Apparently, Kovalchuk is seeking the maximum allowable salary for next season which is currently $11.3 million per season.

Xcel Energy Center

Should the Oilers go on a late season push, they could be at risk of losing their coveted top 2 pick. At present, with the Oilers in 30th place in the NHL, should the season end today, they would draft no worse than 2nd overall. Fortunately, the Wild are heavily favored to win this game with the money line at -240/+220in their favor.

In terms of OHL Scoring, Tyler Seguin currently leads the league with 37 goals, 47 assists, and 84 poitns in 47 games. Taylor Hall is currently 3 points behind though he's played in 3 fewer games. Taylor Hall has 34 goals and 47 assists.

From TSN, it's speculated that Dubielewicz will be starting for the Wild tonight. Should Dubnyk get the start for the Oilers, it will be Dubnyk vs. Dubielewicz - Battle of the Doobies?

***Update - Devan Dubnyk was been re-assigned to Springfield while Bryan Pitton has been recalled. Jeff Deslauriers will start in net again tonight for the Edmonton Oilers.