ST. LOUIS, MI – Winger Kasperi Kapanen will play in his 500th NHL game against his former team on Tuesday night when the Edmonton Oilers begin back-to-back road games this week at Enterprise Center against the St. Louis Blues.
"I think I have to be pretty proud of myself starting in the NHL and making my way up here, and you never want to take anything for granted," Kapanen said pre-game. "The ultimate goal was to play in the NHL one day, and now it's 500 games later, so it's a really cool moment. Hopefully, I play another 500."
Edmonton's pre-game skate this morning was optional, and lines are based on Monday's practice back at Rogers Place in Edmonton before they boarded a flight to St. Louis later in the afternoon to start their back-to-back set against the Blues.
The Oilers will wrap up their road trip on Wednesday when they visit United Center to face the Chicago Blackhawks.
Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are expected to play alongside one another on the top line with veteran Corey Perry after the two superstars contributed to a strong showing at five-on-five this past Saturday despite being unable to find the back of the net on Saturday in a 4-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
"I think over the course of the season, we're probably best having those two on separate lines, but there are times when I think it's good that they do get to play together," Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said. "And last game against Toronto five-on-five, it was probably one of our strongest games that we played against a good team, so there's not much need to change up the line. A little tweak on the third and fourth lines, but pretty much all the same."
