NHL On Tap: Oilers rematch against Canadiens part of busy MLK Day

Welcome to the NHL on Tap. Three NHL.com writers will share what they are most looking forward to on the schedule each day. Today, their choices from the 10 games to be played Monday on Martin Luther King Day.

Oilers rematch with Canadiens

It'll be an intriguing rematch at Rogers Place when the Edmonton Oilers host the Montreal Canadiens (9 p.m. ET, ESPN+, SNW, TSN2, RDS, NHL.TV). The Canadiens defeated the Oilers 5-1 on Saturday, when Carey Price made 34 saves. He more than did his part in limiting Oilers center Connor McDavid to one assist, stopping him on a breakaway late in the first period when the Canadiens were leading 1-0. Despite Price's strong play, Jake Allen will start Monday against the Oilers, making his Canadiens debut after playing seven seasons with the St. Louis Blues. He will have his hands full against an Edmonton team that is capable of exploding offensively at a moment's notice. -- Dave Stubbs

Predators try to stay unbeaten

The Nashville Predators have won their first two games and goalie Juuse Saros is 2-0-0 with a .959 save percentage, allowing three goals on 74 shots. He could get another shot in goal when the Predators play the Carolina Hurricanes at Bridgestone Arena on Monday (8 p.m. ET; FS-TN, FS-CR, NHL.TV). Nashville has provided Saros plenty of goal support, averaging 4.00 goals per game, led by forwards Filip Forsberg and Luke Kunin, who each have scored two goals. Carolina has young forwards off to a strong start as well. Andrei Svechnikov has scored three points (two goals, one assist) and Teuvo Teravainen has two assists in the Hurricanes' first two games, and it's only a matter of time before center Sebastian Aho, who has one assist, breaks out. I'm intrigued by this first game of eight between these Discover Central Division teams, who likely will be competing for a playoff spot all season. One storyline to keep an eye on for the Predators is their power play, which is 0-for-6 to begin the season after finishing tied for 24th with the New York Islanders at 17.3 percent last season. If Nashville is to keep providing ample goal support, getting its special teams to click early this season will be imperative. -- Rob Reese, fantasy editor

Kessel looks to continue hot start

When you think of the Arizona Coyotes, you usually think defense and goaltending first, not offense. But the Coyotes scored eight goals in their first two games, led by forward Phil Kessel, who scored three. I'm looking forward to seeing if Kessel's early season hot streak continues when the Coyotes play the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on Monday (10 p.m. ET; NBCSN, ATTSN-RM). The 33-year-old forward struggled last season, scoring 38 points (14 goals, 24 assists) in 70 regular-season games and four points (one goal, three assists) in nine postseason games. But Kessel looked strong and confident in Arizona's two games against the San Jose Sharks, especially Friday when he scored two goals, including the game-winner, in a 5-3 win. He's not going to score a goal every game (we don't think so, anyway), but it'll be interesting to see how long he can keep his early scoring streak going. -- Tracey Myers, staff writer

Monday schedule

Columbus Blue Jackets at Detroit Red Wings, noon ET (NBCSN, FS-D)
The Blue Jackets look for their first win of the season after losing two games to the Predators.
Boston Bruins at New York Islanders, 5 p.m. ET (NBCSN, SNE, SNW, SNP, MSG+, NESN)
The Bruins started the season with consecutive overtime games against the New Jersey Devils, a shootout win and an overtime loss.
Winnipeg Jets at Toronto Maple Leafs, 7 p.m. ET (TVAS, SNO, TSN3, NHL.TV)
The Jets could be without forward Patrik Laine, who left practice early Sunday, when they play the Maple Leafs, who have scored 11 goals in their first three games.
Buffalo Sabres at Philadelphia Flyers, 7:30 p.m. ET (NBCSN, NBCSP)
The Flyers will try to win their third straight game to start the season, but will be without center Sean Couturier, who is out at least two weeks with a rib injury.
San Jose Sharks at St. Louis Blues, 8 p.m. ET (FS-MW, NBCSCA, NHL.TV)
The Blues look to rebound after an 8-0 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Friday.
Carolina Hurricanes at Nashville Predators, 8 p.m. ET (FS-TN, FS-CR, NHL.TV)
The Hurricanes will try to bounce back after a 4-2 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday.
Minnesota Wild at Anaheim Ducks, 9 p.m. ET (PRIME, FS-SD, FS-N, FS-WI, NHL.TV)
The Ducks are 0-1-1 and forward Max Comtois has scored each of their three goals this season.
Vancouver Canucks at Calgary Flames, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN+, SN1, SNP, NHL.TV)
The Flames look to sweep this two-game set against the Canucks after a 3-0 win Saturday, when Calgary goalie Jacob Markstrom made 32 saves against his former team.
Montreal Canadiens at Edmonton Oilers, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN+, SNW, TSN2, RDS, NHL.TV)
The Canadiens have scored nine goals in their first two games and the Oilers have allowed 12 goals in three games this season.
Arizona Coyotes at Vegas Golden Knights, 10 p.m. ET (NBCSN, ATTSN-RM)
These teams from the Honda West Division play the first of four straight games against each other this week, the first two in Las Vegas and the final two in Arizona.