The Oilers were outscored 9-3 in their first two games; they lost 5-2 to the New Jersey Devils on Oct. 6 and 4-1 to the Boston Bruins on Thursday. The Rangers ended a season-opening three-game losing streak with a come-from-behind 3-2 overtime win against the San Jose Sharks on Thursday. Henrik Lundqvist made 41 saves, and defenseman Brady Skjei scored 37 seconds into overtime. Lundqvist has a .942 save percentage in three starts; he has allowed six goals on 103 shots. Defensemen Kevin Shattenkirk and Neal Pionk will return to the New York lineup after each was a healthy scratch against San Jose.
Players to watch
Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is still looking for his first point this season even though he played the first two games on a line with center Connor McDavid, who has three points (one goal, two assists). Rangers rookie center Brett Howden has a point in three straight games (two goals, one assist).
They said it
"We played better [Thursday] in Boston than we did in game one, so we moved in the right direction, but moving the needle a little bit each night is not going to get us wins. We've got to find a way to win." -- Oilers coach Todd McLellan "We're better than what people think, and we know that. We've just got to go out there and play and prove it. I think we're in that time that we want to prove to everybody and to ourselves that we're a good team." -- Rangers defenseman Brendan Smith
DeAngelo and McQuaid are expected to be scratched. ... Brodziak is expected to play after being scratched against Boston; Khaira will come out of the lineup.
Stat pack
McDavid has a point on each of the three Edmonton goals this season. ... Nurse will play his 200th NHL game. ... Howden has won 31 of 52 face-offs (59.6 percent).
