Saturday NHL odds & picks: Oilers running out of excuses

Yes, it’s still early, but the Edmonton Oilers are running out of excuses in a hurry. First off, enough with dubbing them the “young Oilers” already, because they really aren’t all that young anymore.

Sure, they have young players they’re counting on right now, but they do have players with a lot of experience too. The trouble is, the younger players and the veterans just aren’t meshing very well yet and the squad as a whole is having a tough time adapting to Dallas Eakins’ system.

Just ask Nail Yakupov, who just got back from his two-game timeout from Eakins. That was a line in the sand that the first-year coach had to draw before this season started to slip away from the Oilers already.

Edmonton has lost five straight games as the club heads into the nation’s capital for a matinee date with the Ottawa Senators. The team is giving up 4.4 goals per game and just blew another lead to the New York Islanders in a 3-2 loss Thursday.

“I knew this renovation was going to be messy, but I didn’t think it would be this messy,” Eakins told reporters after the game.

It is messy and it might not get any better Saturday afternoon. The Senators have won two in a row after their own slow start, but they have some work to do as well. They’re allowing 42 shots per game this season, so expect a wide open affair at the Canadian Tire Centre. Take a long look at the over in this one.

Pick: Over 5.5

Colorado Avalanche at Buffalo Sabres

Patrick Roy finally took his first loss behind the Avalanche bench in Detroit Thursday, but this club will bounce back in a hurry. Colorado still outshot the Wings 40-28 and was tied in the third period before Detroit connected on a power play. You should get a decent price on the Avalanche to bounce back in this spot.

Pick: Avalance

Boston Bruins at Tampa Bay Lightning

The Lightning are off to a quick start with five wins through their first seven games but they’re in for a real scrap with Boston coming to town. The Bruins will force Tampa to play their grind-it-out game and both clubs are rolling with hot goalies. Take a shot with the under.

Pick: Under 5.5