Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is on the verge of writing his name deeper into franchise history, standing just games away from surpassing Kevin Lowe to become the Edmonton Oilers’ all-time leader in games played.
Lowe recently reflected on the milestone achievement, praising the veteran forward’s enduring impact in Edmonton. “He’s been a solid player and a fan favourite since he arrived,” Lowe said of Nugent-Hopkins.
Off the ice and on the injury front, winger Ike Howard appeared to escape serious injury following a knee-on-knee collision with New York Islanders forward Emil Heinemann during Saturday’s action in New York. Howard tested his mobility Sunday, showing no obvious discomfort while walking around.
“There was no swelling in the knee when he was walking around,” said Babcock. Howard underwent an MRI on Monday as team medical staff worked to confirm the absence of any structural damage. “It looks like a good situation from a bad situation,” Babcock added.
On the blue line, defensive deployment decisions loom large for the coaching staff. Babcock has praised Shakir Mukhamadullin’s recent performances but is also weighing how to reintegrate Jake Walman after sitting the defenseman for three consecutive games.
“No question, but we had back-to-back shutouts. We have an off-day and we’ll talk about it,” Babcock said regarding the team’s defensive pairings following a stretch that included prior shutouts before facing the Rangers. While Mukhamadullin could potentially sit, coaching alternatives include shifting the left-shot Walman to the right side or removing Ty Emberson from the lineup, given that Mukhamadullin is considerably more comfortable playing on his natural left side.
Between the pipes, goaltender Matt Tomkins captured national attention with a compelling human-interest story during Sunday’s victory, securing his first NHL win in more than two years. Tomkins’ journey to the milestone has been remarkably circuitous. His career began locally in junior hockey with the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s Sherwood Park Crusaders back in 2012, where he played alongside Sean MacTavish, son of former Oilers executive Craig MacTavish. His professional journey later included a stint with the ECHL’s Indy Fuel in 2017—a roster that utilized seven different goaltenders through the season, leaving Tomkins as the sole survivor from that group still active in professional hockey.
League-wide goaltending analytics further spotlighted Oilers netminder Frederik Andersen among the game’s elite at handling high-pressure early situations. According to historical breakdowns examining goals allowed on the game’s very first shot over a 30-year span, Andersen ranks among the top five goaltenders in save percentage for netminders with 300 or more career starts. Across 537 career starts, Andersen has allowed just 26 goals on the game’s opening shot, yielding a .952 save percentage that places him fifth all-time behind Carey Price, Ondrej Pavelec, Jaroslav Halak, and Cory Schneider.
Among active goaltenders with at least 150 career starts, Andersen ranks third, trailing Vancouver Canucks netminders Kevin Lankinen and Thatcher Demko, who occupy the top two spots. At the other end of the active spectrum, Philip Grubauer (.892) and Jacob Markstrom (.894) registered the lowest save percentages on first-shot scenarios among active qualifying goaltenders, while Tristan Jarry has conceded a first-shot goal 28 times across 315 starts, good for a .911 save percentage.
