They’re going nuclear early. But while it’s just preseason game night No. 3 for the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday, Leon Draisaitl says he’s excited to be paired on the top line with Connor McDavid against the Seattle Kraken. “We’ve done this for so long, we know exactly how to flip-flop back and forth,” Draisaitl told media after practice at Rogers Place. “(I’m) always excited to play with him. It’s always a pleasure to be on the same line as him.” And while the McDavid-Draisaitl pairing has been a mainstay of the Oilers attack that’s instilled fear into opposing defences for much of the pair’s decade in blue and orange, a new face will join the party against the Kraken: Trent Frederic, who steps into the right-wing spot usually patrolled by Zach Hyman, who’s out of action while recovering from wrist surgery. Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said he wants to try the 27-year-old Frederic, the March trade acquisition from the Boston Bruins who signed an eight-year contract extension with the Oilers this summer, alongside the dynamic scoring duo to see if there’s a fit. The third-year bench boss thinks there very well could be given Frederic’s size, playmaking abilities and work along boards. “With injuries, you’d like to have some flexibility and guys being able to move there, but I do want to have him play with those guys for a little bit and get some chemistry,” Knoblauch told reporters. “Freddie hasn’t had the opportunity to play top six very much in his career, and I feel that hopefully he can complement them ... Playing with those guys, they like to have the puck, and you don’t need another guy to hog the puck from those guys. You want a guy to retrieve it, get it to them, get to the net. Freddie’s pretty comfortable doing that.” Draisaitl said he thinks the skilled, “tough as nails” Frederic is “willing to learn how to play a certain way to be successful.” “If we can help him become more productive and become more successful, then of course we’re going to do that,” he said. For his part, Frederic is very much looking forward to lining up alongside the team’s top two stars, one-time league scoring leaders and most valuable players both. “The primary reason I came here is to be teammates with them,” he said. “To get the chance to play on a line with them would be awesome.” Podkolzin on leave after father dies Oilers winger Vasily Podkolzin is taking a leave of absence after his father died suddenly Tuesday night, the team said in a statement Wednesday afternoon. The 24-year-old, who signed a three-year contract extension with the Oilers on Tuesday, will return to his home country of Russia to be with his family, acording to the statement. The Oilers acquired Podkolzin last summer in a trade with the Vancouver Canucks for a fourth-round pick. Rookies ‘won’t be forced’ The likes of McDavid, Draisaitl and defencemen Evan Bouchard and Mattias Ekholm will all see their first game action of the preseason on Wednesday night. They’re the top-billed stars on the team, assured of their place in the lineup. Others, though, are playing for jobs, including top-billed rookies such as Matt Savoie and Ike Howard. Knoblauch said the Oilers are hoping to work them into the lineup and “want them to be involved in the team this year,” but that coaches are “not going to force it.” “We’re looking at the long picture, that hopefully they’re productive players by mid-season and are able to do that for six to eight years,” he said. “That would be the ideal situation for those guys. We’ve got some younger players who have talent in Savoie and Howard who we hope can be a big piece of our team eventually. We’re not expecting it to be for the Oct. 8 home opener. We’ll get them comfortable and contributing in a role where they can help us, and then hopefully we can build from there.”
