A five-game road swing to open a stretch with 11 of 14 away from home would be a difficult challenge for most clubs. That might not be the case for a St. Louis Blues team that's playing its best hockey on the road.
After opening their trip with a victory, the Blues look to nail down their ninth win in 10 road games Saturday night with their fifth in a row at the Western Conference-worst Edmonton Oilers.
St. Louis (39-18-4) lost some ground in its bid to win the Central Division during a 1-3-0 homestand before getting back on track with Thursday's 2-1 shootout win at Winnipeg.
The Blues, seven points back of NHL-best Nashville in the Central with a game in hand, are 8-1-0 on the road since Jan. 3. That's a trend they hope to continue with only three games in St. Louis until March 28.
"(The road trip) starts another part of the season for us, another chapter," goaltender Brian Elliott told the team's official website after stopping 30 shots Thursday.
Elliott has gone 0-3-0 with a 4.72 goals-against average in his past three home starts, but he's 6-1-0 with a 2.11 mark and one shutout over his last seven on the road. Now the veteran could get an opportunity to improve on his 5-0-0 record and 1.57 GAA in five career starts in Edmonton.
Jake Allen, who had a personal six-game winning streak snapped in Tuesday's 5-2 home loss to Montreal, will likely be in net for one of back-to-back games as St. Louis visits Vancouver on Sunday.
The Blues have dominated the series with Edmonton recently, going 16-2-1 in the last 19 meetings following a 4-2 home win Jan. 13. They've also outscored the Oilers 19-4 while winning the past four at Rexall Place.
FOX Sports Midwest coverage of the Blues-Oilers game begins at 8:30 p.m. Saturday with Blues Live.
Vladimir Tarasenko has played well against the Oilers, finishing with a goal and an assist in each of his last four matchups. The right wing ranks among the league leaders with 31 goals, though he has only three in his past 15 road games.
Jaden Schwartz has only scored once in his last 10 overall, but he's had four goals over his last five versus Edmonton. T.J. Oshie also has contributed two goals and five assists in his past three meetings.
Edmonton (18-34-10) looks to win back-to-back games for just the second time since early November. The Oilers ended a two-game slide with Tuesday's 2-1 victory at previously red-hot Minnesota.
"We come in here and win the game, so for us it's always fun," left wing Benoit Pouliot said. "We've just got to keep it rolling."
After scoring once over his previous 11 contests, Pouliot provided both goals in the first period. He also had the team's only two scores in the last meeting with the Blues, as the Oilers managed a season-low 15 shots on Allen. Pouliot missed a 4-3 overtime loss at St. Louis on Nov. 28 with a broken foot.
Ben Scrivens allowed four goals on 29 shots in the January loss and is 0-2-1 with a 4.61 GAA in his last three against the Blues, though he's expected to get a chance to build on Tuesday's 33-save performance.
Nail Yakupov could provide a boost for Edmonton if he's able to return after sitting Tuesday due to a groin injury. The winger has four goals and four assists over his last eight games.
