Improved Oilers try to end drought in Boston

Even in the days of Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier, Boston was never one of the Edmonton Oilers' favorite stops. Now that they're off to their best start in a quarter of a century, the Oilers will try to win in the Hub of Hockey for the first time in 15 years.

The Oilers come to TD Garden in one of eight games on Thursday night's NHL schedule with a 9-3-2 record following their 3-1 victory at Montreal on Tuesday. But they are 0-5-1-1 in Boston since beating the Bruins on Nov. 7, 1996 -- and they are catching the Bruins on a roll; Boston has won three in a row, including a 6-2 whipping of the Islanders on Monday.

The Oilers and Bruins get under way at 7 p.m. ET, as do the Blackhawks and Blue Jackets in Columbus. The Hawks lost 3-0 at St. Louis on Tuesday, while the Jackets haven't played since Saturday's 9-2 loss at Philadelphia.

An hour later, Toronto tries to end a two-game losing streak when it visits St. Louis, a game that can be seen in Canada on TSN. The Leafs were shredded 5-1 at home by Florida on Tuesday. The Panthers move on to Winnipeg for an 8:30 p.m. ET start against the Jets, who are back home after a seven-game trip that ended with a 6-5 overtime loss at Buffalo on Tuesday.

The Islanders visit Colorado for a 9 p.m. ET start. The Avs are home after a 5-2 loss in Detroit on Tuesday. Also at 9, Montreal starts a trip in Phoenix; the Coyotes have been off since beating Edmonton 4-2 at home on Saturday. Canadian fans can see the game on RDS.

The last two games both start at 10:30 p.m. ET. Vancouver continues its road trip with a stop in Los Angeles, where the Kings beat Nashville 4-3 on Tuesday. Minnesota, a 3-0 winner in Calgary on Tuesday, visits San Jose in the first meeting since the teams made two major trades during the summer. The Sharks have had two days off since beating L.A. 4-2 at home on Monday.