By Dave Vest
GLENDALE -- The Coyotes will play their final home game before the NHL All-Star break tonight at Jobing.com Arena against the Edmonton Oilers. The puck drops at 7 p.m. (Arizona time).
Phoenix (24-16-9) will enter the game in sixth place in the Western Conference standings and with a three-game home losing streak.
Ilya Bryzgalov will start in goal for the Coyotes, who have beaten Edmonton six times in a row, including four straight in Glendale.
"If you look at their lineup they're a good, young team and they have some really high-end talent that plays the game very fast," Coyotes Head Coach Dave Tippett said of the Oilers. "They're a team that's hungry for credibility and every time they can go out and play well they add to that credibility. They're a dangerous team."
Coyotes defenseman/alternate captain
Ed Jovanovski, who has missed the past five games because of a lower-body injury suffered on Jan. 13 vs. Toronto, skated with teammates at Monday's practice and again at Tuesday's morning skate. Defenseman
Derek Morris (lower-body injury) also took part in the morning skate. Both are hoping to return to the lineup tonight.
Defenseman
Michal Rozsival (lower-body injury) did not skate on Tuesday morning.
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| Photo by Getty Images |
The Coyotes on Monday recalled center
Andrew Ebbett from the American Hockey League and sent winger
Brett MacLean back to the AHL. The move will allow forward
Lauri Korpikoski, who had been playing center in place of injured center
Vernon Fiddler, to move back to winger.
Edmonton (14-25-8) will enter the game winless in its past five games (0-4-1) and in 15th place in the Western Conference standings.
Oilers backup Devan Dubnyk will get the start in goal in place of former Coyotes goalie Nikolai Khabibulin.
"We have to learn how to play this game properly," Oilers Head Coach Tom Renney told the Edmonton Journal after Sunday's loss. "Whatever our season looks like at the end of the day, we have to have gotten better. We have to be able to pay attention to those parts of the game that are incumbent with being a winner over the long haul. That's really what this first season will be all about."
