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          Cross Checks Blog

          Predators not a surprise anymore; Oilers still sinking out West

          • Katie Strang, ESPN.comDec 1, 2014, 10:43 AM ET
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              Katie Strang covers the Detroit Tigers for ESPN.com. She is a graduate of Michigan State University and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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          Trending up

          • Nashville Predators: Maybe some people thought the Predators' hot start this season was a fluke, but we're more than a quarter of the way through the schedule and they are atop the stacked Central Division with a 16-5-2 record and 34 points after a 2-1 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday.

          • Jake Allen: For the first time this season, the St. Louis Blues netminder made back-to-back starts (Brian Elliott is out with injury) and acquitted himself well by recording wins in both games over the weekend. After the Blues edged the Oilers 4-3 on Friday night, Allen stopped 36 of 38 shots and blanked all three shooters in the shootout to give his team a 3-2 win over Minnesota the next night.

          • Jiri Hudler: With a three-point performance in Calgary’s 3-0 win against the Arizona Coyotes, the 30-year-old winger extended his scoring streak to four games. Hudler has five goals and eight points during that span.

          Trending down

          • Anaheim Ducks: Though the Ducks remain one of the dominant teams out West, they dropped two straight over the weekend, a 4-1 loss to Chicago on Friday and a 6-4 defeat at the hands of the San Jose Sharks one night later. Giving up 10 goals in the matter of two games? Ouch.

          • Edmonton Oilers: It feels like we are piling on each week, but things continue to sputter for the Oilers and frustration is clearly mounting. You can hear it in coach Dallas Eakins’ postgame comments from the team’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Blues this weekend, lamenting his club’s inability to get a break. Goaltender Ben Scrivens kept it real, though, telling reporters that the Oilers are just not playing well enough to get wins in the NHL. “I think we’re getting what we deserve right now,” Scrivens said after the team’s latest loss.

          Injury report

          • Though rookie Calvin Pickard is expected to make his third straight start Monday night against Montreal, the Avs are hoping to get goaltender Semyon Varlamov back from a groin injury this week.

          • Los Angeles Kings defenseman Alec Martinez has yet to return to the lineup after undergoing surgery to repair a finger injury last month, though general manager Dean Lombardi indicated that he could be available to play this week.

          What to watch for

          • Speaking of Kings defensemen, Slava Voynov will be arraigned Monday on domestic violence charges following his October arrest. Once Voynov enters a plea, a trial date will be set for the 24-year-old. Voynov has been suspended indefinitely since the alleged incident.

          • The Blues will play the remaining three games of their four-game road trip this week, and it’s a tough task ahead as they face the Chicago Blackhawks, the Predators and the surging New York Islanders.