There is nothing like a good ol’ fashioned provincial rivalry to gauge early season form. Of course, there was nothing good about the initial Battle of Alberta of this young NHL season, as far as the were concerned. Having fallen 4-1 to the back on Oct.
13 to fall to 0-3 for the first time since 2015 was only made worse by the fact their southern counterparts used the win to rocket to 3-0 out of the gates. Things have since evened out, of course, with both teams hovering right around the .500 mark and just two points separating them in fourth and fifth place in the Pacific Division standings heading into Sunday’s rematch at Scotiabank Saddledome.
“I think we’ve grown for sure and have developed good habits since the last game,” Oilers forward Vasily Podkolzin said following the morning skate. “And we just kept building and trying to play hard. “That’s what I think.
That’s why we’ve grown from our last game.” Back then, Podkolzin was playing in the bottom six and still searching for his first point since joining the Oilers via a trade with the for a fourth-round draft pick on Aug. 18.
He has since risen to become a staple on the Oilers second line next to Leon Draisailt and Viktor Arvidsson. At least, it was the second line, before captain went down with an ankle injury. Now it’s become the defacto first line for at least the next couple weeks.
“It’s a great opportunity for me, playing with a player like that,” Podkolzin said. “I just try to lea.
