This in from host Bob Stauffer of Oilers News, news that one of Edmonton’s few hard-checking forwards Kasperi Kapanen, who went hard into the boards on Sunday against Detroit will miss some games.

“He’s going to be out a little while,” said Stauffer, the team’s ultimate insider. “I’m going to tell you that right now.”

The Oilers are already a team missing spirit, fight and aggression just now, as Stauffer noted: “One of the players I overheard from New Jersey was saying how easy these guys (the Oilers) were to play against. They didn’t fight and compete for space. Frankly it didn’t surprise me. They got to be better. They got to dig in here… I know the Oilers aren’t built to be an uber-physically competitive team. But they’re going to have to ratchet up the intensity.

My take

1. The Oilers lost fast and physical Dylan Holloway to an offer sheet a year ago. They lost super aggressive Evander Kane in the off-season, trading him to Vancouver to create cap space. Edmonton lost hyper-competitive Corey Perry to free agency. And they lost one of the playoff’s most physical players in Zach Hyman to injury in the third round of the 2025 playoffs. It’s a tough blow to also lose Kapanen now, as this team is listless on the forecheck.

2. Edmonton is the second last hitting team in the NHL this year, ahead of only Pittsburgh. Edmonton averages 16.9 hits per 60. Top hitting St. Louis averages 28.6. Of course, Edmonton was also a low hitting team last year but was able to crank up the physical play to a high level in the playoffs, especially with the return of Kane to the line-up and Hyman deciding the time was ripe to become a hitting machine on the forehceck.

3. Edmonton brought in Trent Frederic and signed him to an eight-year deal to play strong two-way hockey, but also to be a fearsome physical force on the forecheck. To earn his keep, Frederic has got to hit hard, agitate and stand up for his teammates. He’s yet to do that as an Oiler in any significant manner.

4. Vasily Podkolzin, with 16.2 hits per 60, and Kapanen, with 13.0 hits per 60, have been hitting this year. They were also a forechecking force in the playoffs. But the Oilers need more than two guys playing that kind of hockey. Curtis Lazar and Noah Philp have shown a willingness to hit but they’ve been in and out of the line-up.

5. With Kapanen out, if coach Kris Knoblauch wants to make good on his plan to have a big, heavy, physical line he might well go with Podkolzin and Frederic on the wings, Philp at centre.

At the Cult of Hockey

STAPLES: NHL insider right about Edmonton’s line-up, Oilers coaches not so much

LEAVINS: Game grades against Detroit Red Wings