Oilers Must Make One More Change
Edmonton Oilers can improve their chances to win the series by scratching another player.
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports - Oilers Must Make One More ChangeEDMONTON -- Game five is tonight in Vancouver.
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The Edmonton Oilers look to gain a 3-2 series lead in the Vancouver Canucks barn - Rogers Arena. After a dramatic finish to Game four to tie the series up, momentum is certainly on the Oilers side.
It's up to them to capitalize - and to not allow the Canucks to feed off of their home crowd.
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Kris Knoblauch made a few bold choices last game, and there is one more he should make to give this team their best shot at winning the rest of the series. Cody Ceci should come out in favor of Troy Stecher. Here are three reasons this needs to happen tonight.
Troy Stecher Should Play in Hometown
The former Canucks' defender should get a chance to play against his old squad - and his hometown. It would certainly be special for Stecher and his family if he got an opportunity to start a game tonight.
Stecher has been a good soldier - waiting in the wings for his moment. Acquired at the trade deadline, he only played seven games for the Oilers in the last leg of the season. Stecher had two points and averaged 16 minutes a night.
Cody Ceci Needs a Reset
Ceci has struggled for parts of the past two playoff runs in addition to this post season. There have been some questionable decisions that have led to goals against - that simply cannot happen in the playoffs.
Giving him a break for a game would be good - even if it's just for a mental reset. He knows how he needs to play, and the Oilers need more out of him. The pairing of Darnell Nurse and Ceci have had the worst high danger scoring chance percentage (HDCF%) for all their pairings - and both Nurse and Ceci have the most high danger scoring chances against.
Splitting them up was a good call - giving Ceci a game of rest is the next call that needs to happen.
Troy Stecher is Built For the Playoffs
Stecher might not be the biggest defender on the Oilers blue line - but he certainly doesn't play that way. He is aggressive, closes gaps quickly, can skate exceptionally well and can play north of 18 minutes a night. He's a bulldog on the ice and isn't afraid to mix it up or throw his weight around.
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He has 21 games of playoff experience, so he's had more than a taste of the high pressure environment of the post season.
We will know later today if Kris Knoblauch has any roster changes up his sleeve for tonight's game.
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