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Posted at 2:00 PM EST.

10:05 PM EST. Regulation only. There is really nothing to like about the Oilers right now. Their 6-2 win over Tampa Bay this past week is nothing but fool’s gold, as the Bolts were wrapping up an exhausting eight-game trip. The Oilers also have five wins in their past eight games but two other victories came against Arizona and Vancouver. Two others came in OT. At the end of the day, you shut down or contain the Connor McDavid/Leon Draisaitl line and the Oilers become one of the most beatable teams in the league. Remember, Ryan Nugent Hopkins is still on the rack and the team traded away Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle so that leaves the secondary scoring to whom? Can Talbot is shaky, the defense is shakier, the team is now weak up the middle and the metrics have been heading south for 15 weeks and counting. As long as Edmonton’s opponent shows up, the blueprint to beat them is not a difficult one.

The Ducks have dropped three of their last four with only victory over that span occurring against the weak Sabres in OT. That does not endear them to this market. Furthermore, the Ducks return home from a five game trip, which is another angle the market likes to fade. Frankly, we could not care less, as teams’ returning home have become very aware of being lethargic and have taken steps to rectify it. That angle has been virtually worthless this season. Additionally, the Ducks had to play Boston, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal and Buffalo on said trip and beat Boston, outshot Toronto 44-40, outshot Montreal 45-29 and lost in OT to Ottawa before beating Buffalo. We could easily be discussing a 5-0 road trip for the Ducks and subsequently a much higher price on them here. Truth is, the Ducks are playing at an extremely high level. They are 100% healthy and are dominating games. There is a good chance that John Gibson returns tonight but even if he does not, Ryan Miller is more than capable of holding the fort. The Ducks remain in the Western Conference playoff hunt and are sitting just outside a playoff spot via a top-three finish in the Pacific or being one of two wild-card teams. Edmonton sits 15 points out of wild-card position but it’s now crunch time for the Ducks and they are likely about to go on a big time run that very likely begins here. 

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