Tonight there is a very good chance that we will see Connor McDavid become the 4th fastest player in NHL history to reach the 1000 point mark. Only 98 players in NHL history have ever reached this plateau and there are only 7 active players have reached that milestone.
Wayne Gretzky did it in 424 games, Lemieux did it in 513 and Bossy 656. If McDavid does it tonight he will have done it in 659 games. It's an incredible accomplishment and even more impressive that the 27 year old McDavid is still well in his prime. Hopefully fans get to see #97 reach that milestone tonight in front of the home crowd (though doing it against the Leafs would also be satisfying).
Edmonton played well for about 50 minutes against the Islanders but a couple lapses in judgement followed by less than brilliant goaltending put Edmonton at risk of blowing what should have been a locked victory. The work in the defensive end in combination with a goaltender who isn't making the one extra save when those lapses happen is hurting this team. It appears that Calvin Pickard will get the start tonight.
In other news it looks like Arvidsson will miss tonight's game as he is dealing with a slight injury. Knoblauch believes that the forward will be ready for the road trip but the team will running 11/7 tonight.
Once again I want to talk about Jeff Skinner. After a decent start, the prolific scoring winger has struggled over the past 10 games and has also been steadily dropping down the lineup. In the short term, I look at some of his defensive gaffes and understand the drop in icetime but the Oilers signed Skinner to add another strong offensive option that will help them produce more throughout the lineup. Playing him on a fourth line with Ryan and Perry is not what is best for the long term success of this player and the team. Perhaps we will see Skinner get a chance with Draisaitl tonight in Arvidsson's absence.
Speaking of Draisaitl, after signing his massive 14 million dollar deal, #29 is proving he is worth every penny. Draisaitl is tied with Nylander, Caufield, Rantanen, and Reinhart for the league lead in goals with 12. While Draisaitl has always been a prolific powerplay producer, 10 of his 12 goals have come at even-strength and 16 of his 20 points. Draisaitl once again is showing he is far more than a McDavid beneficiary and deserves recognition for his hot start.
Enjoy the game tonight!
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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