The Vegas Golden Knights haven’t won on the road this season. Their task of winning got a bit harder as the Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid is set to return from an ankle injury.
“I feel good, looking forward to going and getting back in there,” McDavid told reporters via the Oilers website. “I was pretty lucky. It wasn’t pretty good initially. Things turned the corner relatively quickly. It feels good.”
The puck drop is set for 6:30 p.m. in Edmonton.
Vegas is among the league’s top, averaging 4.50 goals scored per game.
The road, however, has been a different challenge for the Golden Knights. The team averages 2.75 goals per game in away contests while giving up 4.50 goals per game.
The Oilers haven’t started the season off to the start they wanted. They’re averaging 2.38 goals per game, while giving up 3.15 goals. The return of McDavid should serve as a boost.
“We’re playing one of the best teams right now,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said to reporters via the Oilers website. “To get your No. 1 center back int he lineup is a huge boost for us. It’ll be a huge test for us.”
For Vegas, McDavid’s return doesn’t change much in how they plan to attack and defend.
“The players know that you have to get over the top of him when you can to eliminate rushes through the neutral zone,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said to the Golden Knights website. “They’ve played against him in the past. So it’s just a refresher on that.”
Forward Ivan Barbashev called McDavid “the best player out there,” and not many disagree. But for Cassidy, he doesn’t worry too much about the other team in November. He’s focused on making sure his team plays their game the right way and continues to improve on a day-by-day basis.
“End of the day, we still have to play our game and account for how special a player he is,” Cassidy said. “We still have to execute when we have the puck and check well to get it back.”
Former first-round pick finally hitting his stride with Golden Knights
Paul Delos Santos is the Las Vegas sports insider for Dice City Sports. Follow him on X at @PaulDelos_.
