NHL Game Day Oct 3, 2026: Oilers Host Kraken, Flames Visit Canucks
It's a Saturday double-header for Alberta hockey fans! The Oilers are home to the Seattle Kraken at 5 p.m. MT, and the Flames try to shake off Thursday's opener in Vancouver at 8 p.m. MT. Here's what we know heading into puck drop. If you missed this morning's recap of McDavid's five-point night and the rest of the league, catch up on our NHL Update here.
Oilers vs. Kraken: 5 p.m. MT, Rogers Place
Why change what worked? Edmonton is expected to dress the same 18 skaters who won 9-7 in Vancouver on Thursday, according to NHL.com's projected lineup:
Forwards: Vasily Podkolzin-Connor McDavid-Leon Draisaitl; Max Jones-Colton Dach-Kasperi Kapanen; Alex Formenton-Owen Michaels-Mathieu Joseph; Isaac Howard-Josh Samanski-Trent Frederic
Defence: Mattias Ekholm-Evan Bouchard; Ryan Shea-Connor Murphy; Jake Walman-Shakir Mukhamadullin
Scratched: Ty Emberson, Spencer Stastney
Neither team held a morning skate, so the goaltending question stays open. Tristan Jarry and Devon Levi are both listed, and as of early afternoon no starter had been confirmed. Levi made 15 saves in the win on Thursday, and Jarry started Tuesday's opener.
On the injury front, the Oilers are still without Zach Hyman, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (injured reserve), Frederik Andersen, Jason Dickinson, Mattias Janmark, Alec Regula and Matthew Savoie.
The Kraken side: Seattle (1-0-0) rolls into town after a 6-1 win in Calgary on Thursday, and they'll have some fresh legs. Head coach Lane Lambert confirmed winger Mackie Samoskevich will make his season debut tonight after missing the opener with an upper-body injury, according to Sound of Hockey. Forward Jacob Melanson is on injured reserve with an upper-body injury, and Lambert said he doesn't expect him to play in the next three games. Seattle hasn't named its starter yet: it'll be Joey Daccord or Philipp Grubauer.
Flames at Canucks: 8 p.m. MT, Rogers Arena
Calgary had a morning skate in Vancouver, and CalgaryFlames.com posted these projected lines:
Forwards: Matvei Gridin-Morgan Frost-Matt Coronato; Sam Honzek-Mikael Backlund-Joel Farabee; Brennan Othmann-Ryan Strome-Yegor Sharangovich; Maxim Tsyplakov-Martin Pospisil-Adam Klapka
Defence: Kevin Bahl-Zach Whitecloud; Joel Hanley-Simon Nemec; Jake Middleton-Zayne Parekh
That means Joel Hanley comes in on the blue line in place of Yan Kuznetsov, and Brennan Othmann slots onto the third line with Strome and Sharangovich.
In goal: Devin Cooley gets the start for the Flames, according to Sportsnet's Eric Francis. Dustin Wolf, who made 26 saves in Thursday's 6-1 loss, is the backup. At the other end, Leevi Merilainen is expected to make his first start for Vancouver.
After Zach Whitecloud called the home-opener loss "embarrassing," tonight is a big chance for the Flames to answer back.
What's Next
Tonight: Kraken at Oilers, 5 p.m. MT
Tonight: Flames at Canucks, 8 p.m. MT
Sun. Oct. 4: Flames at Kraken, 6 p.m. MT (Climate Pledge Arena)
Enjoy the double-header, Alberta, and we'll have the full recap for you tomorrow morning.
Sources: NHL.com, CalgaryFlames.com, Sportsnet (via Daily Faceoff and Daily Hive), Sound of Hockey. Lineups are projected; starting goalies were unconfirmed as of about 1 p.m. MT unless noted.
