Hockey in August? Let's Celebrate with our 'Game of the Week'

Opening faceoff: No. 12 seed Chicago vs. No. 5 Edmonton, Game 1, best-of-5 series, Qualifying Round, Winner plays No. 4 in Western Conference (will be determined by results of top seeds round-robin tournament). Edmonton will be the "home" team for Games 1 and 2, then Chicago is "home" for Game 3 and, if necessary, Game 4.
Vote is In: For our social followers scoring at home, this game won the Twitter vote for our first featured game, beating out No. 12 Montreal vs. No. 5 Pittsburgh in a tight race. Maybe fans are looking for an upset from a 12th seed? Fan alert: Twitter voting starts Sunday who you want to see featured during Tuesday games this week.

Homing In: The "home" designation goes back to the Oilers if there is a Game 5. With no fans in the stands and Edmonton players in the "bubble" lodging and quarantine similar to all other teams, the home-ice advantage tapers quite a bit. One important fact: the "home" team coach gets to make the last player changes during stoppages of play, allowing to get the ideal matchups, such as putting out a defensive-minded line of forwards in attempt to muzzle the likes of Edmonton's Connor McDavid or Chicago's Patrick Kane.

CHI outlook: All eyes will be on the Blackhawks goal crease to see if two-time Stanley Cup winner Corey Crawford is the CHI goalie. Crawford missed the first 12 days of training camp, going public the reason was a positive test for COVID-19. He looked solid in the first 30 minutes during an exhibition win against St. Louis Wednesday (Malcolm Subban took the nets mid-second period). Crawford can be underrated because his game is being in the right position more than making the flashy saves; this trait could Chicago make this a series that goes four or five games. Along with Kane (always fun to watch), keep an eye on rookie Dominik Kubalik, a 30-goal scorer, who in other seasons would be a prime candidate to win the Calder Trophy for rookie of the year; alas, that honor appears to be a two-tussle between young defensemen Quinn Hughes (Vancouver) and Cale Makar (Colorado). It's expected Kubalik will play on the Blackhawks' top line with Jonathan Toews and Brandon Saad.
EDM outlook: Former Kraken senior hockey advisor and now Oilers coach Dave Tippett split up McDavid and Leon Draisaitl (both legitimate league MVP candidates) to make it tough to send out checking lines on both players. The duo scored 77 goals between them during the shortened regular season, representing 35 percent of the Oilers' offense. Not surprisingly, Edmonton's 1-1A punch leads a power play with a 29.5 percent success rate with the extra man advantage. That percentage not only leads the NHL but it is highest of any team since the New York Islanders dynasty went over 30 percent during the late 1970s. CHI coach Jeremy Colliton (who has some hockey ties with Tippett) worked a lot of penalty-killing drills during training camp but it will be hard to stop the EDM express train. Tippett has a decision to make in goal: Mike Smith (more playoffs experience, previous stops with Tippett in Dallas and Arizona) or Mikko Koskinen (better save percentage). The guess here is Smith gets the nod to get EDM off the blocks for what might well be a deep run in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.