BLOG: Malone looks to bring energy

EDMONTON, AB -Brad Malone is no stranger to being recalled by an NHL club looking to inject some energy into their lineup.
"My whole career I've kind of been in this situation," said Malone, who was recalled by the Oilers on Sunday from the Bakersfield Condors. "This isn't my first time I've come up and gotten an opportunity to bring some life. The opportunity is there. I'm not going to go out of my way to do anything that isn't within the team lines here. At the same time, you just want to fall in line and push from the bottom a little bit."
The Oilers are in the midst of a three-game slide, having lost to Vancouver, Winnipeg and Ottawa. They now face Malone's former club, Carolina, on Tuesday night. With Leon Draisaitl and Drake Caggiula still on the mend, Malone could factor into the game. He was centring a line with Jussi Jokinen and Anton Slepyshev at Monday's practice.
"I'm just going to be myself and try to be physical, bring some energy," said Malone.
The forward has 13 goals and 17 assists in 176 NHL games.
"He's played in the League before," said Oilers winger Zack Kassian. "He plays hard, he's good on the forecheck, good on draws, he's a heart-and-soul type guy and you need those guys to have a winning ingredient."
Malone had two goals in five pre-season games with the Oilers.
"For me, he's a fairly responsible defensive guy and he was one of our bottom six players that produced offensively throughout training camp," said Oilers Head Coach Todd McLellan.
"He has the ability to penalty kill, so all areas we're looking to improve in."