Today marks the beginning of the nearly two week break for the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament being held in Boston and Montreal. What that means is a completely empty schedule until February 22. For most of the team, that is. Edmonton has a few players who will be participating in this tournament while everyone else is getting some much needed R&R before heading into the final stretch of the regular season.
And given how some of these games have been going lately, a reset might be what the doctor ordered.
The results of last week’s games
The Edmonton Oilers played three games last week, against the St. Louis Blues, Chicago Blackhawks, and Colorado Avalanche. They won the first two but lost the third. A 2–1 record every week wouldn’t be a bad thing at all for most teams, but with the Oilers trying to make another deep playoff run, the ways the games went were a touch concerning.
The win against the Blues required a late comeback to take the W in overtime. The win over the Blackhawks was a late collapse in regulation sending the game to overtime. While the game against the Avalanche was a chaotic and action packed, but sloppy loss.
The positive to take away from that is that they were still able to come away with two victories despite the sloppy play.
The star players led the way once again with an impressive six point week from Leon Draisaitl. Four goals led him to be the first player this season to hit the 40-goal mark while he briefly held the league lead in points before Nathan MacKinnon reclaimed the lead with four points against the Oilers on Friday night. Draisaitl enters the 4 Nations break with a seven-goal lead over William Nylander, but sits four points back of MacKinnon in the Art Ross Trophy race.
Jeff Skinner was a player to note this week as he found himself elevated in the lineup and producing. Spending some time on the second line with Draisaitl, he had a goal and two assists in three games this week, including his first multi-point game in two months. It took a while, but maybe Skinner is finding his place in the organization.
The Edmonton Oilers players who have games this week
The Oilers have three players participating in the 4 Nations Face-Off. Connor McDavid for Team Canada while Mattias Ekholm and Viktor Arvidsson represent Team Sweden. They will be the only players in action this week.
Canada and Sweden open the tournament against each other on Wednesday evening. Then, both teams are in action on Saturday as Canada takes on the United States while Sweden battles Finland.
Other games in the Oilers organization to watch
Without the NHL in action, maybe this is the time to shift our focus onto the other teams or prospects in the Oilers organization.
The Bakersfield Condors play on Tuesday evening against the Tuscon Roadrunners, Thursday evening against the San Jose Barracuda, and Sunday against the Coachella Valley Firebirds.
Matthew Savoie, the top prospect in the organization, has been stellar in Bakersfield recently. He is second on the team in scoring with 34 points in 42 games while sitting third in the entire AHL in rookie scoring. His game has undergone massive development this season as he is beginning to push for a shot in the NHL by season’s end. Savoie recently won the fastest skater competition at the AHL All-Star weekend to go along with his offensive development and sneaky good progress in the defensive side of his game. He is a player to be excited for and now is the perfect time to tune in and watch.
Two more of the team’s better prospects are Sam O’Reilly and William Nicholl, both with the OHL’s London Knights. O’Reilly has 47 points in 47 games this season and has been playing at or above a point per game pace in the last couple months while Nicholl might be a late round gem as he currently has 41 points in 47 games. The Knights play on Thursday against the Barrie Colts and Friday against the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.
What will you be watching in the 4 Nations break?
Photo by Melissa Tamez/Icon Sportswire
