{coyotes} Oilers' Yakupov not ready to return vs. Coyotes

Tuesday, 12 January 2016

{coyotes} Oilers' Yakupov not ready to return vs. Coyotes

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OILERS (17-23-3) at COYOTES (21-16-4)

TV: SNW, FS-A PLUS

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Edmonton Oilers forward Nail Yakupov will not play against the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday because of an ankle injury.

Yakupov took part in the Oilers' optional morning skate, but coach Todd McLellan told the Oilers website that Yakupov isn't quite ready to return. Tuesday will be the 22nd straight game he's missed with a sprained ankle sustained Nov. 25.

McLellan said he's hopeful Yakupov will be able to play Thursday against the San Jose Sharks.

With Yakupov still injured and Matt Hendricks serving the first of a three-game suspension from the NHL Department of Player Safety for boarding Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad on Sunday, the Oilers (17-23-3) will play with seven defensemen; Brad Hunt, who was a healthy scratch Sunday, will be the seventh.

The Oilers have lost two in a row and are 3-6-1 in their past 10 games; the Coyotes (21-16-4) have one regulation loss in their past 10 (7-1-2).

Arizona has won three in a row and earned at least a point in five straight (4-0-1). The only game the Coyotes didn't win in that span was Jan. 2 against the Oilers, when they blew a third-period lead and lost 4-3 in a shootout.

A four-game winning streak would be Arizona's longest since winning five straight from Oct. 26-Nov. 5, 2013.

Despite the shootout loss, the Coyotes have at least a point in 20 straight games against the Oilers (16-0-4). It's the longest point streak in Coyotes history against one team.

The Coyotes have scored the most goals in the Pacific Division (116) and are fourth in the Western Conference. However, they've allowed 124 goals, something that has to improve if they want to hold or improve on their spot in the standings.

"What we're doing offensively has nothing to do with the goals-against," said Arizona coach Dave Tippett, who will coach his 500th game with the Coyotes on Tuesday. "We went through a stretch where our goaltending should have been better and we were giving up too many out-numbered breaks. Then you add in [eight] shorthanded goals [allowed] and the numbers pile up fast."

But much has changed with rookie Louis Domingue in goal. In his past nine games, he's 6-1-2 with a 1.94 goals-against average and .941 save percentage. During the past five games, he's 4-0-1 with a 1.58 GAA and .952 save percentage.

"He's playing very well," Tippett said. "He's been solid and his game really hasn't deviated much in those eight games. It's not as if he's been up and down. We have to continue to play well in front of him. But if he does his job things seem to fall into place."

Here are the projected lineups:

COYOTES

Max Domi - Antoine Vermette - Mikkel Boedker

Tobias Rieder - Martin Hanzal - Anthony Duclair

Jordan Martinook - Brad Richardson - Shane Doan

Kyle Chipchura - Boyd Gordon - Viktor Tikhonov

Oliver Ekman-Larsson - Connor Murphy

Klas Dahlbeck - Zbynek Michalek

Nicklas Grossman - Michael Stone

Louis Domingue

Anders Lindback

Injured: Mike Smith (abdominal surgery), Joe Vitale (fractured orbital bone)

Scratched: Steve Downie, Stefan Elliott, John Scott

OILERS

Taylor Hall - Leon Draisaitl - Teddy Purcell

Benoit Pouliot - Ryan Nugent-Hopkins - Jordan Eberle

Iiro Pakarinen - Mark Letestu - Lauri Korpikoski

Anton Lander - Rob Klinkhammer

Andrej Sekera - Brandon Davidson

Darnell Nurse - Justin Schultz

Mark Fayne - Eric Gryba

Brad Hunt

Cam Talbot

Anders Nilsson

Injured: Connor McDavid (collarbone), Oscar Klefbom (finger), Andrew Ference (undisclosed), Nail Yakupov (ankle)

Scratched: Luke Gazdic

Suspended: Matt Hendricks

Status report: Smith skated in pads Wednesday for the first time since Dec. 15 abdominal surgery. Smith, who spent about 15 minutes on the ice, was expected to need 8-10 weeks to recover, and Tippett said Smith remains on that same schedule. "It's right about the same timeline that we talked about [returning sometime in February]. He had pads on for the first time today but we're not even in the realm of talking about [a countdown]. It was more skating with pads on then taking shots. He was out there 15 minutes maybe."

Who's hot: Rieder has six points in his past three home games and has 17 of his 26 points in 19 games at Gila River Arena this season.

Team Stats