The Edmonton Oilers return to action Saturday against the Ottawa Senators at Rogers Place.
You can watch the game on CBC & Sportsnet or listen on the Oilers Radio Network, including 630 CHED.

YOUR GAME-DAY ESSENTIALS

GAME DAY VIDEO
COMING SOON - OILERS TODAY | Pre-Game vs. OTT
PRE-GAME RAW | Coach Tippett
PRE-GAME RAW | Nurse
PRE-GAME RAW | Yamamoto
RECENT VIDEOS
PRACTICE | Earned Start
RAW | Coach Tippett
RAW | Draisaitl
RAW | Skinner
BY THE NUMBERS
Oilers Statistics
Senators Statistics
Game Notes
Stats Comparison
RECENT BLOGS & ARTICLES
BLOG: Seeing more Skinner
FUTURE WATCH: Savoie named Hobey Baker Award nominee

VIEWING INFORMATION
You can watch Saturday's game on CBC & Sportsnet at 8:00 PM MT.

INSIDE THE OILERS

News and notes from Friday's Oilers practice, including a piece on Stuart Skinner's recall up to the big club.
>> READ MORE IN THE INSIDE THE OILERS BLOG

PRE-GAME REPORT

EDMONTON, AB - Game on!
The Edmonton Oilers are set to host the Ottawa Senators at Rogers Place on Saturday night in their first taste of competitive play for 10 days after being forced into another extended break due to schedule postponements and issues surrounding COVID-19 within the organization.
With the club on a five-game winless skid heading into the pause, there was plenty of time for practice and self-reflection in the Oilers dressing over the past week and a half as players and coaches used the opportunity to reset, refocus, and return to action with a full lineup.
"It's been weird, especially with this COVID stuff and games getting cancelled, but we've had a couple of practices and they were good practices," forward Kailer Yamamoto said pre-game.
"I think the break helped our team a little bit by giving our guys a little extra time to regroup and get back on the right page. I definitely think it will help and I think we'll show it tonight."
The Oilers were a confident club against the Senators in the Scotiabank North Division during the shortened 2020-21 season, winning all nine of their head-to-head matchups and outscoring them 41-17 in the process. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl were the main aggressors, combining for 42 points against Ottawa last campaign.
But '21-22 brings a fresh slate and new challenge for both teams. The Senators are a budding group of young players who've gone 6-3-1 in their last 10 games, including a 4-1 drubbing of the Calgary Flames on Thursday in their first game back from their own extended 12-day layoff.

"That's last year," Head Coach Dave Tippett said. "This is a whole different bird, so they had quite a break and got one game under their belt. We're coming out of a break, so I expect both teams to play with lots of energy. We'll see where it goes."
In the eyes of defenceman Darnell Nurse, extra preparation and the excitement of returning to action has the group poised to come out of the break with plenty of jump.
"It's definitely exciting to play a game," he said. "We've been out here practicing hard and working out in the gym, so it's nice to be able to go out there and play against someone in a different jersey.
"There're no excuses. We've got to come out tonight and play a really concerted effort and find a way to win."
BREAKING OUT AFTER THE BREAK
While trying to navigate the extended break and arrive on the other side recalibrated for Saturday's return to action, video sessions were at the forefront of that process for plenty in the Oilers locker room.
"I definitely have been looking at a lot of video trying to break down my game," Yamamoto said. "I'm sure a lot of guys do. Any time you're in a skid like this, you definitely want to find different ways to win, so I think our team is doing that right now."
Yamamoto dove deep into the game tape looking at ways he can find more opportunities to shoot and open himself up for more scoring chances.
"Obviously I've been talking a lot this year that I need to shoot more," he said. "I need to get to the net more and make my own plays a little bit more.

The Spokane, Wash. product hasn't quite yet found his rhythm this season when it comes to putting pucks on net after posting only eight shots in his last 14 games dating back to Dec. 1, when he recorded a goal on two shots in a 5-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. In 34 total games this season, Yamamoto has put up 34 shots and recorded seven goals and five assists.
Regularly deployed on a line with the League's leading goalscorer Leon Draisaitl, the 23-year-old is trying to take advantage of the talent around him by opening himself up to opportunities to accept a pass, but there's still the added challenge of avoiding enemy defences in the offensive zone.
"Just finding those areas and those little pockets where Drat or any of those guys I play with can give me that scoring chance," he analyzed. "It's tough to get to those areas a lot of those times, and other teams are really good at defending. Just finding those areas is tough."
Draisaitl has been public with the praise of his regular linemate throughout the '21-22 season. While Yamamoto admittedly isn't regularly on social media to read about those encouraging comments, the message is received in their regular conversations.
"He talks to me in the locker room all the time and he's always pumping me up," Yamamoto said. "I kind of get the gist of what he said in that interview, but it just means a lot for one of the top-two guys in the League to give me that praise. It means a lot and gives me more confidence."
LINEUP NOTES
The Oilers will be able to ice a full lineup tonight after forwards Warren Foegele, Tyler Benson, and defenceman Slater Koekkoek all cleared COVID-19 Protocol late Friday afternoon.
"We have some choices," Tippett said. "They haven't had much skating, so one of those guys will play."
The bench boss is hoping more practice time in the days following tonight's matchup with Ottawa can help settle his lineup, with Draisaitl's position being an important detail for how the lines will pan out.
"I'm hoping next week we can get some good practices in and figure our lineup out," he said. "The biggest thing that changes our lineup is when Draisaitl plays wing or plays centre. That drives it a little bit. Some of it has been the COVID issue of where all the parts fit."

After Cody Ceci practiced alongside Darnell Nurse and Duncan Keith was paired with Tyson Barrie at Friday's practice, Tippett said there could be potential changes to the club's back end.
"We've talked about that a lot the last couple of weeks," Tippett said. "You'll see some tweaks there just with the options that we've been using pretty consistently and what we're going to try."
Goaltender Stuart Skinner was officially added to the active roster from the taxi squad Saturday afternoon and is expected to make his 10th NHL start of the season after Tippett heaped praise on the young netminder following Thursday's practice.
While the Oilers sat idle for 10 days, Skinner went 3-0-0 for the Bakersfield Condors with a shutout, 1.31 GAA and .935 save percentage. In nine starts for the Oilers this season, Skinner is 4-5-0 with a 2.70 goals-against average and .916 save percentage.
Lines for tonight's game will be made apparent during warm-ups.
-- Jamie Umbach, EdmontonOilers.com

PREVIEW

OILERS vs. SENATORS
WATCH: 8:00 p.m. MT; televised on CBC & Sportsnet
Oilers Team Scope
After a 10-day hiatus from game action, the Edmonton Oilers drop the puck to continue the 2021-22 National Hockey League season Saturday versus the Ottawa Senators.
The Oilers enter the contest on a five-game losing skid, being outscored 21-12 while going 0-for-5 on the man advantage and 10-for-15 on the penalty kill over that span. After having the break due to scheduling conflicts and COVID-19, members of the club used the time off to reset before returning to the ice.
"We don't have to put on a show," Leon Draisaitl said following practice on Friday. "There are two points on the line that we need. It's always nice to get a few days away from the rink, probably preferably a couple less than what we've had, but I think we're all very excited to get back into games and get that rhythm back."
Senators Team Scope
The Ottawa Senators pumped the Calgary Flames 4-1 following a 12-day layoff of their own, improving to 6-3-1 in their last 10 games and 10-18-2 overall.
Drake Batherson, who was named to the Atlantic Division all-star team on Thursday, tops the squad in offensive production with 10 goals, 19 assists and 29 points through 25 outings. Forward Josh Norris leads the team in the goal-scoring department with 14 strikes while captain Brady Tkachuk also has 12 goals and 23 points.
On the road, the Senators are 5-9-2, have been outscored 57-43, and own a 14.6 percent power play and 79.8 percent penalty kill.

By The Numbers
Leon Draisaitl (26G, 27A) and Connor McDavid (19G, 34A) lead the NHL with 53 points apiece. ... Draisaitl is 1st in the NHL with 13 power-play and six game-winning goals. ... The Oilers have the fourth-best power play at home (28.3%) and 24th penalty kill (78%). ...
The Sens average 33.7 shots against per game and 28.7 shots for (26th). ... OTT is 7-5-0 when scoring first and 3-13-2 when trailing first. ... The Senators are 9-1-0 when leading after the second.
Injury Report
OILERS - Mike Smith (thumb) is week-to-week; Slater Koekkoek (COVID-19); Warren Foegele (COVID-19); Tyler Benson (COVID-19); Kyle Turris (COVID-19); Dylan Holloway (COVID-19); Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (lower body) is on Injured Reserve;
SENATORS - Connor Brown (jaw) is week-to-week; Scott Sabourin (finger) is week-to-week; Tim Stutzle (COVID-19); Nikita Zaitsev (heel) is on IR; Shane Pinto (shoulder) is on IR; Angus Crookshank (undisclosed) is on IR; Colin White (shoulder) is on IR.
-- Paul Gazzola, EdmontonOilers.com