Oilers vs Blackhawks

With Edmonton sitting at 22-16-7 and clinging to second in the Pacific while Chicago’s 19-19-7 mark has them on the outside of the Central playoff picture, this feels more like a must-have for the Oilers than for the Blackhawks despite Chicago’s recent surge. Edmonton has dropped three of its last five (including a 4-3 shootout loss to the Kings) but still owns one of the league’s most dangerous profiles: a 3.38 goals-for rate, a top-tier power play around 34%, and Connor McDavid coming off a recent 17-game point streak and a hat trick against Nashville, with Leon Draisaitl continuing his long run of production against Chicago. Chicago, meanwhile, is 4-1 in its last five, buoyed by a 7-3 demolition of St. Louis and a 3-0 shutout in Nashville, but that push has come while juggling illnesses and injuries; both primary goalies Spencer Knight and Arvid Soderblom have been banged up or ill, prospect Drew Commesso has already been thrown into starts, and key youngsters like Frank Nazar remain on IR, even as Connor Bedard returns from a month-long shoulder absence to lead the team in points. Historically, McDavid has torched the Hawks for 35 points in 24 regular-season games and Draisaitl’s point streaks in this matchup are well-documented, and with Edmonton owning the clear special-teams edge plus slightly better underlying numbers, I’m willing to lay the road price in what functionally feels like a playoff-positioning game for a team trying to stay within striking distance of Vegas while Chicago is still chasing the wild card. I’d play Edmonton at -167 on the moneyline down to about -180 and grade this wager an A- for a strong likelihood of cashing and solid, if not massive, monetary upside. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 12/01/2026 09:40.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nhl/team/_/name/edm/edmonton-oilers))

Assuming a market total of 6.5 at roughly -110 either way, the number is set right where you’d expect for an Oilers–Blackhawks game: Edmonton is playing 6.7-goal hockey on average (3.38 GF and 3.31 GA per game) behind a lethal 33–34% power play and league-average penalty kill, while Chicago’s 2.86 GF and 3.12 GA per game yield about 6 goals per night with a quietly excellent penalty kill above 85% and a top-10 power play of its own. Recent form leans toward offense showing up: Edmonton’s last handful of games have featured scores like 6-2 over Nashville and 4-3 over Winnipeg, while Chicago has mixed a 7-3 win over St. Louis and a 3-0 road shutout of Nashville around a 5-1 loss to Washington, all against the backdrop of both of the Hawks’ regular goalies dealing with day-to-day issues and illness that already forced them to lean on Commesso. Historically, Edmonton has dominated the matchup 9-2-1 over the last four seasons and typically finds ways to generate chances and penalties against this opponent, with McDavid and Draisaitl repeatedly burning Chicago’s defensive structure even when the final totals occasionally land on the lower side as in this year’s 3-2 Oilers OT win in Edmonton. With both teams hovering around or just past the 41-game mark, the playoff race tends to tighten systems, but the combination of Edmonton’s high-event style, Chicago’s vulnerable crease and below-average five-on-five goals against drives me slightly toward more scoring rather than less; I lean Over 6.5 at -110 and would still consider it playable up to about -115, grading it a B for a moderate edge with decent upside if the game turns into a special-teams showcase. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 12/01/2026 09:40.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nhl/team/_/name/edm/edmonton-oilers))

For the puckline, the question is whether Edmonton’s offensive ceiling and Chicago’s fragile goaltending/defensive situation are enough to justify laying -1.5 at a plus-number (around +145) on the road, and there’s a reasonable case that they are, albeit with more variance than the moneyline. Edmonton’s goal differential is essentially break-even despite strong shot and chance numbers because of inconsistent goaltending, but when the Oilers win, they often win by margin—recently posting multi-goal victories such as 6-2 over Nashville, 4-0 at Seattle, 5-1 over Calgary and 6-3 at Florida—on the back of McDavid and Draisaitl plus an active blue line led by Evan Bouchard. Chicago’s overall -12 goal differential and game log tell the story of a team that can be dangerous when hot but is still prone to blowouts; the Hawks have been tagged in losses like 9-3 at Buffalo, 7-1 at Anaheim and 6-0 in Los Angeles even as they’ve improved structurally and surged to a 4-1 run in their last five. With both Knight and Soderblom listed as day-to-day and Commesso already pressed into duty, one more off night in the crease or a late empty-netter becomes a very real path to an Edmonton cover in what’s effectively a four-point swing game for the Oilers in a tight Pacific race, while Chicago is grinding just to stay in the Western wild-card conversation. I’m willing to nibble on Edmonton -1.5 at +145 or better and grade it a B-, acknowledging the extra volatility created by Chicago’s recent uptick in play and improved special teams but seeing enough offensive and situational edge to justify a smaller, higher-upside position compared with the moneyline. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 12/01/2026 09:40.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nhl/team/_/name/edm/edmonton-oilers))