At long last, Matthew Tkachuk will face the Edmonton Oilers for the first time since Game 6 of last year’s Stanley Cup Final. The superstar winger missed their first matchup of the season in Florida while recovering from offseason surgery, and despite the Panthers being banged up and almost surely to miss the playoffs this year, he’ll be front and center in the lineup on Thursday night.
Tkachuk spoke to the media after morning skate and praised Edmonton for the battles they’ve had in recent years, before adding that he expects another deep playoff run from them this season.
“There is big respect for each other going to the Cup Final the last two years, but whenever that happens, whenever you play a team two years in a row the dislike ramps up. They have probably become our number rival just because of the magnitude of the game and the intensity of the last two playoffs. Great team over there. Some incredible players and I’m sure they will be right back there this year,”
The 28-year-old has been productive in his return to NHL action, with 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) tallied across 20 games played.
Awfully complimentary words from Tkachuk, though the Oilers and their fans know all too well to take everything he says with a grain of salt. He certainly hasn’t been shy to voice his opinion on why Connor McDavid has struggled to get over the hump in the biggest games and moments in recent years.
There have already been calls for Edmonton to turn this matchup into a street fight, similar to what their games against Tampa Bay have become. Leon Draisaitl—who was the recipient of his chirps at the Olympics—won’t be in the lineup, but that doesn’t mean the rest of the Oilers have forgotten what was said, or what’s been taken from them in back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals by Tkachuk and the Panthers.
It all sets up for what could be a testy affair at Rogers Place on Thursday night. Puck drops at 9 p.m. ET.
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