The Edmonton Oilers will be without Connor McDavid for their next three games after the NHL suspended the superstar forward following an illegal cross-check to the head of Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland on Saturday.

The past six months have been a whirlwind for Edmonton Oilers forward Vasily Podkolzin, who is now a fan-favourite in the Alberta capital.

On Monday (Jan. 20), the NHL announced that Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid has been suspended three games for cross-checking Conor Garland of the Vancouver Canucks.

Thursday, 6 p.m., Rogers Place TV: SN Pacific. Radio: Sportsnet 650 The buzz: Conor Garland is a fan favourite in Vancouver and in the crosshairs of considerable vitriol in Edmonton. The mighty-mite winger will garner considerable consideration as the Canucks’ unsung hero at the end of this trying and tumultuous season.

The entire post-game interview lasted a brisk 1:16. Draisaitl may have given a more "pissy" response in the past. This was notably calm and collected despite his obvious disappointment in the game's end results. This is a statement of Draisaitl's growth and maturity. He doesn't get too high when they win, and he doesn't get too low when they lose.

The Vancouver Canucks hit the road for a one-and-done road trip as they face their division rival Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night. It was a 3-2 victory for the Canucks this past Saturday when the two teams last met.

Leon Draisaitl did his best at practice Tuesday morning when prodded by the media for a reaction on the three-game suspension handed to his friend and teammate Connor McDavid on Monday.

Edmonton Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl scored his 29th goal in the first five minute of a game in a 3-2 loss to the Washington Capitals.

If the Canucks really felt they had to do something about their logjam at winger — a premise that doesn’t hold much weight today considering Phil Di Giuseppe is back in the top six — they should’ve picked another one of their promising young wingers: Nils Höglander.

Quinn Hughes scored two power-play goals and the struggling Vancouver Canucks beat the Edmonton Oilers 3-2. Danton Heinen also scored and J.T.

Leon Draisaitl scored twice and Stuart Skinner made 24 saves for the Oilers (29-14-3), who lost for the first time in five games and second in the past 10 (8-2-0).

Quinn Hughes scored twice on the power play and J.T. Miller added a pair of assists as the host Vancouver Canucks held on to beat the Edmonton Oilers 3-2 on Saturday to end a two-game losing streak.