View the Oilers projected lines, defence pairings & starting goaltender for Friday's inaugural matchup with Utah Hockey Club at the Delta Center

© 2024 Chris Tanouye/Freestyle Photo

By EdmontonOilers.com Staff

November 29, 2024

SALT LAKE CITY, UT – Goaltender Calvin Pickard will be between the pipes on Friday night as the only change to the lineup for the Edmonton Oilers in their inaugural matchup with Utah Hockey Club at the Delta Center.

Friday's morning skate was optional, and the lines from Saturday's victory on home ice over the New York Rangers will remain intact for the Oilers in the first of back-to-back games this weekend, Head Coach Kris Knoblauch confirmed.

Zach Hyman and Viktor Arvidsson will remain out through the weekend due to injury, with Knoblauch saying that only Hyman has the potential to get back into the lineup before the end of Edmonton's three-game road trip on Wednesday night in Las Vegas.

Kris speaks to the media ahead of Friday's game in Utah

Forward Kasperi Kapanen will maintain his spot on the top line next to Connor McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, having recorded one assist in two games so far with the Oilers since being claimed off waivers last week from the St. Louis Blues.

"I think there's still room to improve, but that first game, I didn't play for a while and was kind of just getting my legs back into it," Kapanen said. "Now that we've had five days in between games, the body feels good, so excited for tonight."

The Finnish forward is finding it hard to describe the feeling of riding shotgun to the League's greatest player at this early point in his Oilers tenure and is keen to continue developing chemistry with No. 97 in Edmonton's first visit to Salt Lake City on Friday to face the NHL's newest franchise.

"I'm kind of lost for words to be honest," he said of playing with McDavid. "After that game against New York, I'm surprised he doesn't have 2,000 points by now. He's a tremendous hockey player. He's obviously the best out there, so I'm just trying to keep up with him, be available and get him the puck."

Kasperi addresses the media pre-game on Friday in Salt Lake City

View the Oilers Projected Lineup vs. Utah below:

Nugent-Hopkins - McDavid - Kapanen
Podkolzin - Draisaitl - Brown
Skinner - Henrique - Janmark
Caggiula - Ryan - Perry

Ekholm - Bouchard
Nurse - Kulak
Emberson - Stecher

Pickard
Skinner