Detroit Red Wings vs Edmonton Oilers: Free NHL Pick
Published 8:56 PM ET, Oct 26, 2026 · Game time 9:40 PM ET
Hunter's analysis
A Rookie's Nightmare Debut on the Worst Night Possible
Detroit arrives at Rogers Place closing out a grueling four-game western road trip — stops in Seattle, Vancouver, and Calgary already behind them — with a 1-3 SU record on that swing. The Red Wings are handing the net to Michal Postava, a 24-year-old Czech netminder with exactly one period of NHL experience to his name, after confirmed starters John Gibson (sat out) and Daniil Tarasov (day-to-day, injury) are both unavailable. Postava's lone NHL appearance was a garbage-time relief stint in Vancouver where he stopped 7 of 8 shots. Tonight he faces the McDavid–Draisaitl–Bouchard engine on a motivated, bouncing-back home squad — as brutal a first start as possible. Edmonton's offensive machine is averaging a league-best 4.36 goals per game (2026-27 season), and Connor McDavid alone is tracking at a 200-point pace with 33 points in 11 games.