PRE-GAME REPORT: Oilers at Sharks

The Edmonton Oilers look to make it four straight wins when they face Darnell Nurse & the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on Saturday afternoon.

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PRE-GAME REPORT: Oilers at Sharks

SAN JOSE, CA – Gearing up to face an old acquaintance in the Shark Tank.

The Edmonton Oilers will look to make it four straight wins when they face former teammate Darnell Nurse & the San Jose Sharks on Saturday afternoon at SAP Center, continuing their three-game road trip through California with momentum on their side.

Nurse spent 12 seasons with the Oilers, including back-to-back trips to the Stanley Cup Final in 2024 & 2025, and recorded 324 points (88G, 236A) in 798 games wearing Blue & Orange before he was dealt to Edmonton’s Pacific Division rivals this past summer in a deal involving defenceman Shakir Mukhamadullin and prospect Zack Sharp.

Nurse scored his first goal for the Sharks on Thursday with the OT winner in a 3-2 win against the St. Louis Blues, with the Sharks sitting 3-1-0 through the season’s first four games. San Jose could receive a boost from the return of Macklin Celebrini, who’s a game-time decision after missing the last two contests with a lower-body injury.

Seeing his former teammates for the first time since the trade, Nurse said he developed lasting friendships in Edmonton that go beyond hockey and that he was excited to meet them for dinner Friday night to catch up. But it’s going to be all business on Saturday.

“When the game starts tomorrow, all bets are off," Nurse said. "I've got a lot of friends over there too. They'll be lifelong friends. It'll be different for sure, wearing a different jersey and being able to play against that team, but yeah, I'm really looking forward to just the challenge of playing against one of the top teams in our division. 

“It'll definitely be different. (You) practice against each other for a long time, so (it’s a chance) to be able to lace up and do it for real."

Amid the reunion with Nurse, the Oilers are focused on building on their previous two victories over Seattle and Anaheim, allowing only three power-play goals in those wins and earning a big comeback 5-2 win over the Ducks on Wednesday after regrouping in the intermission to score five unanswered and limit them over five more power plays.

Head Coach Mike Babcock is stressing the need to keep pushing the needle forward as the Oilers adapt to some of the new ideas that’ve been brought in under his tenure so they can build consistency in their approach that isn’t quite there yet despite a pair of good results.

“We tried to work on just ourselves,” Babcock said. “We tried to focus on some of our routes coming out of our zone, and we tried to focus on being a better forechecking team.  We don't forecheck well enough, and we make little mistakes that let them get easy exits.  

"Forechecking and heavy o-zone plays are like body punches; in a heavyweight championship, if you can get those going, the rest will take care of itself.  We haven't been able to quite establish that on a regular basis yet, so we're going to try to do that.”

Friday’s practice in San Jose saw Zach Hyman skate for the first time since he sustained an injury in Edmonton’s season-opening loss to the Canucks, while forward Filip Hallander was on the ice after linking up with the team following his acquisition from Pittsburgh.

HELLO HALLANDER

The Swede who will wear No. 19 for the Oilers took part in his first practice with the team on Friday after being acquired from the Penguins earlier this week and looks poised for his debut after skating alongside Jason Dickinson and Kasperi Kapanen.

"It's been good. It's been a little hectic with stuff happening, obviously, but it's good to be here," Hallander said on Friday. "Great team, great players, great city and great fans, so the whole package of coming to a team that wants to win. I'm just happy about the chance to be part of this group."

Hallander hopes good health and opportunity with the Oilers will help him grow as a fast, hardworking forward who can play on the penalty kill and chip in on offence after missing most of last season with a blood clot issue.

"I haven't been healthy enough. That's like the main part of why I haven't played," he said. "So I think the games I've played, I've shown I can chip in on offence. But I really want to be good defensively, a PK guy, and hopefully reliable in all ends. I want to be as versatile as you can be. Put me anywhere in the lineup, and I'll do the work."

The 26-year-old was limited to 13 games, where he registered a goal and three assists last season, and was off to another great start with a goal and two assists in Pittsburgh's 7-0 opening win over Philadelphia, but a logjam at forward for the Pens and bodies returning from injury meant opportunity wasn't always going to be there.

Babcock saw a confident player during Hallander's first practice and is looking forward to adding him to the group, potentially starting on Saturday against the Sharks.

"I like the confident kid that seemed to make good plays with the puck, and it's going to take him a bit just to figure out how we're playing and what we're doing, but he looks like he's a worker," he said. "They tell me he got some pace and then he can make some plays, so we're excited to have him."

HYMAN RETURNS TO PRACTICE

The Oilers got a lift from Zach Hyman's return to practice on Friday, but the winger is still tempering expectations as he works to return from an Opening Night injury.

"A good skate," Hyman said. "First skate with the group in a little bit, so definitely getting there, and always good to skate with the guys."

Hyman was rotating in on the second line with Kapanen at right wing during Friday's practice, with no return date set yet for the 34-year-old who played 20:33 and had three shots in Edmonton's 6-5 loss to the Canucks in their first game of the season.

The veteran and new Assistant Captain for the Oilers this season has enjoyed what he's seen over the past few games from his teammates and is excited to get back out there soon for some real game action when he's ready.

"It's been great.  It's been really awesome," Hyman said of their 3-0-1 record. "We're off to a great start. Obviously, guys are really playing confidently out there, which is great.  I think [Devon Levi] had a couple really good games, which is awesome, and I think everybody's just finding a role.  I think it's been really good. 

"We've had guys out of the lineup and everybody stepping up. A bunch of new guys came in and filled roles. Obviously, the big guys are carrying a lot and playing up to their standards, which is pretty high."