Oilers Offence Faces Another Big Test In Senators' Ullmark

It's remarkable how much can change in a month.

The last time the Edmonton Oilers and Ottawa Senators faced off on November 19th, both teams were floundering. The Oilers were 9-8-2, still unable to get their season off the ground. The Senators were 8-8-1, in the middle of what would turn out to be a five-game losing streak.

One month later, the two teams meet again as the hottest teams in the NHL. The Oilers' win in Ottawa kickstarted an 11-3 run that's featured big wins over elite teams like Tampa Bay, Minnesota, and Vegas, and they now find themselves one point back of second place in their division.

The Senators, meanwhile, have come alive in December, winning six straight games and eight of their past nine, the best record in the league in that span. And they have one man to thank for that hot streak: Linus Ullmark.

Acquired in an offseason trade from Boston, the former Vezina winner had a rough introduction to Ottawa. He was just 5-7-1 with an .886 save percentage through the first two months of the season, a far cry from his usually excellent numbers.

But he's completely turned his season around since December 5th, going 7-0 with a .967 save percentage and just seven goals allowed during the Senators' hot streak. The last time he allowed more than two goals in a game was in a 4-3 shootout loss to Anaheim on December 1st.

Ullmark's recent play has had a remarkable impact on his overall numbers, bringing his season SV% from the aforementioned .886 to .916, the sixth-best mark in the NHL.

Cracking Ullmark will be the biggest key to tonight's game for the Oilers. Luckily, they've got plenty of recent experience in having to scratch and claw for goals.

They're coming off back-to-back comeback overtime wins, first facing down the Bruins' elite defence on Thursday and then spending 60 minutes getting shut down by the Sharks' Yaroslav Askarov yesterday. Ullmark will be their toughest test yet, but they've proven they can find a way to score in just about any situation.

Both teams are riding high entering tonight's game, vaulting themselves from the mushy middle of the league into playoff spots. It'll be down to Ullmark and the Oilers' offence to determine which of these two teams can enter the Christmas break on a high note.

Tonight's game gets underway at 6:00 at Rogers Place.

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