OILERS (14-10-4) at FLYERS (15-10-3)
7 p.m. ET; CSN-PH, SNOL, NHL.TV
Oilers team scope
Defenseman Dillon Simpson, 23, will make his NHL debut for the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday. He was recalled from Bakersfield of the American Hockey League on Saturday but was a healthy scratch the past three games. He was with the Oilers from Nov. 5-18, and though he didn't play, he said being around the team on and off the ice will make him a bit more comfortable. "Knowing the guys, being around here now … being around the process, going through meetings. It helps a lot," said Simpson, selected in the fourth round (No. 92) of the 2011 NHL Draft. Coach Todd McLellan said he's confident Simpson will be a positive addition to the lineup. "He's a heady player, he sees the ice well, he moves pucks," McLellan said. "We have a lot of confidence in him. Last year at training camp, little bit banged up and didn't really get himself on the map. This year through training camp he found a way to get on the map. We have a lot more confidence in him now than we did then." The Oilers are looking for any help they can get on defense. Mark Fayne was placed on injured reserve Wednesday because of an undisclosed injury, where he joins Darnell Nurse (lower body), Brandon Davidson (upper body) and Eric Gryba (undisclosed). Edmonton is 5-8-2 in its past 15 games after a 9-3-1 start.
Flyers team scope
Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov is making people forget he's a 19-year-old rookie. Provorov is second on the Flyers in average ice time per game at 20:30, but during their six-game winning streak, he has averaged 21:40 per game, and he had his first two-goal NHL game, against the Chicago Blackhawks on Dec. 3. "Certainly in and around the rink, on the ice, he handles himself as a pretty mature young man," coach Dave Hakstol said Wednesday. "He makes you forget that number [his age] pretty quick." Provorov has been matched against the best opposing players during the win streak, including Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks in a 3-1 victory Saturday and Jaromir Jagr of the Florida Panthers in a 3-2 overtime win Tuesday. "Feels great to see the coach has trust in you," Provorov said. "For me I go out there and try to do everything I can to help the team win. Doesn't matter if it's scoring two goals or playing good defensively. Doesn't matter for me. Defense first, and then if I can contribute offensively I'll try to." It's likely Provorov will see a lot of Oilers center Connor McDavid on Thursday, but Hakstol wasn't committing to any matchups.
Oilers projected lineup
Milan Lucic -- Connor McDavid -- Drake Caggiula
Patrick Maroon -- Ryan Nugent-Hopkins -- Jordan Eberle
Benoit Pouliot -- Leon Draisaitl -- Jesse Puljujarvi
Matt Hendricks -- Mark Latest -- Zack Kassian
Dillon Simpson -- Matthew Benning
Scratched: Tyler Pitlick, Anton Slepyshev, David Musil
Injured: Mark Fayne (undisclosed), Darnell Nurse (lower body), Eric Gryba (undisclosed), Brandon Davidson (upper body), Iiro Pakarinen (lower body)
Flyers projected lineup
Michael Raffl -- Claude Giroux -- Jakub Voracek
Travis Konecny -- Brayden Schenn -- Wayne Simmonds
Taylor Leier -- Nick Cousins -- Dale Weise
Chris VandeVelde -- Pierre-Edouard Bellemare -- Roman Lyubimov
Brandon Manning -- Shayne Gostisbehere
Ivan Provorov -- Andrew MacDonald
Scratched: Nick Schultz, Michael Del Zotto, Boyd Gordon
Injured: Sean Couturier (lower body), Michal Neuvirth (lower body), Matt Read (upper body)
Status report
The Oilers held an optional morning skate and did not do line rushes. "I haven't even put lines up in the room today," McLellan said. "Just have to find out where a few of our players are with injuries and illness." McLellan said Nurse, who last played Dec. 1, said he doesn't expect to see the defenseman back in the lineup before January. Gustavsson will start in goal. … Gudas replaces Del Zotto in the lineup. Gudas had missed the past three games recovering from an illness. Mason starts his sixth straight game and 14th of the Flyers' past 16. Gordon was activated from injured reserve Wednesday and could be an option to play Thursday. He has missed the past 19 games because of an upper-body injury. The Flyers did not conduct a morning skate.
Who's hot
McDavid has 17 points (six goals, 11 assists) in his past 10 games, and leads the NHL with 25 assists and 36 points. … Draisaitl has 14 points (eight goals, six assists) in his past 12 games. … Mason is 5-0-0 with nine goals against in his past five starts. … Simmonds has back-to-back two-goal games. He's fourth in the League with 14 goals, and leads with eight power-play goals. … Giroux has eight points (three goals, five assists) in his past seven games, with points in six of them.
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