Oilers in Philly

They will try for their 4th straight win against the Philadelphia Flyers at Wells Fargo; as the injury plagued Oilers, will make their first and only appearance in the City of Brotherly-love.

The Oilers are coming off a decisive win, when they man-handled the falling Colorado Avalanche, 5-1 in Denver three nights ago.  The Flyers on the other hand, will try purge the haunting memory of the 7 to nothing pounding at the hands of the Rangers last Sunday.  It was their worst lost since 2006, yet it is no secret (nor is it an excuse) that the club has been hit hard with the flu bug.

"We were off today. I've already said that." said Pronger after the Ranger loss. "We're at the stage now where it's a test of our character. We're facing some adversity, and we've got to show our mettle and understand it's going to take some hard work to get out of it."

Their recent defeat counts as their 4th straight, and there is no denying that the Oilers will have their hands full against the big beasts from the east; spearheaded by perma-pissed-off Chris Pronger, and an equally pissed-off Philly coach of Pete Laviolette.  Moreover, their glaring slump serves as a "fair warning" to the all Oilers' grasshoppers who will set foot onto hockey's most intense environment for the first time.

Rabid Fans + Ticked Off Flyers + Super Angry Coach = This game could get ugly.

“They will be fired up, said Tom Renney. “Pete will have his team ready to go after a little stretch that was unusual for them.  The loss against New York will be really fresh in their minds, they’ll want to correct that right away, through us, so we really have to be ready.”  

"It’s good for us. really, really good for us to face teams like this, premier teams in the league,” said Renney. “If we want to be a playoff team next year we have to make sure we come through places like Philadelphia and have success.”

The Oilers have yet to hit the early morning practice and it will known later as to who Tom Renney will dress.  However, Gilbert Brule was back practicing with the team after sitting out for the third straight time with an intestinal problem. 

“We have to make sure we give him an opportunity to do that. Most important of all, I want to see him healthy, for his own reasons. We want him healthy and in a position to move forward and tackle his hockey career like he should be able to.”

With Brule back, there is no word yet about the fate of Alex Giroux, who was re-called out of dire haste when Brule fell ill on Saturday.  

Oilers vs Flyers 4pm pacific time Mar 8 2011 www.atdhe.me  (perhaps)