Oilers Shuffle Lines, Put Hyman in Unfamiliar Spot vs. Hurricanes

The Edmonton Oilers will be getting Zach Hyman back on Saturday night as the team travels to Carolina to take on the Hurricanes. After 19 games missed, Hyman is back on the team’s top line, with a familiar face in Connor McDavid. However, he’s got a new linemate in Matt Savoie who he’s not played with and it will be intriguing to see how their chemistry develops.

It’s an interesting spot for Hyman, who should be good to go, but there will be questions about his health and effectiveness. Edmonton is throwing him right into the fire, not wasting any time getting him what look like top-line minutes.

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The team’s top line will consist of Savoie-McDavid-Hyman. The second line will feature a group that has built some strong chemistry over the past two weeks in Vasily Podkolzin, Leon Draisaitl and Jack Roslovic. on the third line will be Andrew Mangiapane with Adam Henrique and Trent Frederic. Mattias Janmark, Noah Philp and Curtis Lazar make up the fourth line.

Kasperi Kapanen is still out with an injury. Ike Howard was re-assigned to the AHL, and David Tomasek will be a healthy scratch.

On the blue line, Mattias Ekholm will be paired with Evan Bouchard, while Darnell Nurse will go with Jake Walman. Ty Emberson sits as Brett Kulak and Alec Regula make up the final pairing.

Stuart Skinner will get the start in goal.

Hyman’s Return the Story Of Oilers vs. Hurricanes

Hyman’s return is a massive lift for the Oilers. He’s been one of their most dependable scorers and will step back onto the top line and power play. Health is the only question, but he’s dominated Carolina lately, scoring seven goals in his last six games against them.

Next: Did the Oilers Accidentally Find Their Missing Top-Six Winger?