One Edmonton Oilers Defensemen is Being Benched Tonight: The Official Odd Man Out

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Joshua Deeds
March 6, 2023 (5:52 PM)

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With General Manager Ken Holland dealing Tyson Barrie at the deadline, there's been a shift in defensemen being played tonight.

Jay Woodcroft will dress six defensemen tonight, with the Mattis Ekholm deal changing the lineup for the Oilers for good. But will this strategy payoff?

With the change in tactics, Woodcroft has decided to pull Philip Broberg out of the lineup, as he will be the odd man out. Edmonton's last win in a 12F-6D team was with Markus Niemeläinen in December.

«I hate losing. I want to win every single game.»

Desharnais and Mattias Ekholm will draw in tonight as a defense pair, as the Edmonton Oilers look to change their outlook, hoping they will beat the trend of losing 3 games situated with 12 forwards and 6 defensemen.

Desharnais is a strong penalty killer and has been deployed often in short-handed situations in the AHL. During the 2021-22 season, Bakersfield allowed 54 goals while on the penalty kill. Desharnais was on the ice for 31 of those goals, an indication of just how much he played in the game state for the Condors

It looks like the Oilers are moving towards a shutdown line, with Ekholm and Desharnais, and will look to beat a tough-to-beat Buffalo Sabres tonight.

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