When we last checked in on the Edmonton Oilers, they looked to be turning a corner and had just made a major trade, acquiring Tristan Jarry from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Stuart Skinner and Brett Kulak.
The Oilers started the new Jarry era well, winning five of the next seven games and pushing them to first in the Pacific Division. However, they have since dropped two straight games by a combined score of 11–4, putting them back down in a tie with the Vegas Golden Knights for top spot while looking less than impressive.
The return of McJesus and the dearth of secondary scoring
Connor McDavid has been on another level, posting 34 points in 15 games in December, the most by any NHL player in one month since Mario Lemieux did it in 1995.
During this nine-game stretch, he posted 20 points in nine games, the most in the NHL during that time. His line with Zach Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins have continued their strong play, with Hyman scoring 11 points and Nuge eight points.
McDavid also looks to have some extra jump in his game from the eye test, giving the Oilers a fighting chance in every game while making multiple highlight reel plays each game.
That is sorely needed, as after McDavid, Leon Draisaitl (14 points), Hyman and Nuge, the next highest forward scorers are Jack Roslovic, Max Jones, and Matt Savoie with two points each.
The Oilers have always been thought of as a two-man team with no depth scoring, even if that isn’t necessarily true, but that is certainly what it is looking like right now. It doesn’t help that Andrew Mangiapane and Trent Frederic, who make $3.6M and $3.85M, respectively, had a combined one goal in 15 games. It’s not exactly surprising that they are going to be healthy scratches tonight based on that kind of performance, but it certainly is worrying. Then there are other veterans, Adam Henrique and Mattias Janmark, who also only have one assist each in the last nine games.
There was some hope of the return of “Kid Line” when the Oilers recalled Isaac Howard and Quinn Hutson and put them on a line with Matt Savoie. However, there wasn’t much ice time for that line, and now Hutson has been sent back down again in light of Kasperi Kapanen returning from injury.
In the last nine games, the Oilers have only had six goals scored without McDavid or Draisaitl getting a point, and only four without them or Nugent-Hopkins or Hyman. That simply isn’t sustainable, and at some point, the top guys are going to need some help if the team wants to win in a sustainable way.
Goaltending in flux
After the trade for Jarry, we were all hoping that the constant conversation regarding the Oilers goaltending was settled.
Jarry won his first three games as an Oiler, and although he had a save percentage of below 0.900 in his first two games, that was due to letting in a late, meaningless last-minute goal. That is much preferable than letting in a bad goal to start the game, at least.
Unfortunately, Jarry was injured in his third game, when he was looking very good, stopping 12 of 13 shots.
Being right before the roster freeze meant the Oilers either had to make yet another goalie trade or call up someone. The Oilers chose to call up Connor Ingram to form a tandem with Calvin Pickard.
Ingram impressed in his first three games, posting above 0.900 save percentage and winning two of the three. He didn’t have a great game in the rematch against Boston on New Years’ Eve though, letting in six goals and dropping his overall save percentage to 0.883.
Meanwhile, Calvin Pickard has played three games since Jarry’s injury, posting a 0.915 save percentage. However, while Ingram’s stats were impacted by one bad game, Pickard’s is boosted by one good game, when he stopped 41 of 42 shots in a win against Winnipeg. Still, he lost his two other games, letting in four in each.
It would appear Ingram has taken over the net, with him slated to start against Nashville tonight. He has certainly earned it, and one has to think the fact that he has new equipment for the Oilers third jersey is a pretty big sign he has a good chance of sticking around once Jarry comes back.
Last year, Colorado ended the season with two different goalies than they started with, and it is starting to look like the Oilers could be in the same boat.
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The next eight games
The Oilers start their next eight-game stretch tonight against the Nashville Predators. They then head on a quick one-game road trip against the Winnipeg Jets, come back home for a game against the Los Angeles Kings, before heading out again on a back-to-back road trip against the Chicago Blackhawks and the Predators again.
They then have yet another one-game homestand against the New York Islanders, then yet another one-game road trip against Vancouver. The Oilers end things off with coming back home against the St. Louis Blues, the start of an eight-game homestand.
Only the Islanders and the Kings are currently in a playoff spot, while St. Louis (27th), Chicago (29th), Vancouver (31st), and Winnipeg (32nd) are four of the six worst teams in the league. One would hope that means that the Oilers can take advantage of that to get themselves some more solid footing.
The Oilers are hoping to get Jake Walman back soon, along with Tristan Jarry at some point this month. Their return, along with that of Kapanen, should certainly help the team get things on track.
Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire
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