The Edmonton Oilers went from playing one Southern California team to another last night. After blowing a 4-2 lead with a disastrous third period against the Anaheim Ducks, the Oilers moved on to Los Angeles for a date with the Kings. Maybe this would be a far more motivational game for Edmonton. Especially given the rich recent playoff history and the fact the Kings also lost a tough game the night before. And especially with losing Mattias Janmark to injury.
With the Oilers now in a perilous position in the standings, this game became a must-win. Lose this one, and all the games in hand that everyone else has will bite you one way or another. Win, and at least there’s a bit of breathing room. Not to mention, you essentially dash most of the hope that Los Angeles had left for a playoff berth.
There was some doubt as to the outcome after 20 minutes, as the same 2-1 score after the first period appeared again in the same manner. But the last two periods were all Oilers, at both ends of the ice. Remember Edmonton hanging six on the Vancouver Canucks without a response? That came around again, albeit divided evenly between two periods. In the process, Connor McDavid continued to add his name to new locations in the NHL history books.
Oilers win 8-1.
This was a desperately needed result. Not only did the offence show up for the second night in a row, but this time the other end of the ice was kept nice and tidy to boot. Here’s the game story.
There’s truth to McDavid’s “I play better with less downtime” quote
Earlier on in the season, McDavid stated that he actually liked playing with less time in-between games. Often breaks can be to the benefit of a player, in the sense of healing injuries and whatnot. For someone as passionate about the game as McDavid is, however, not playing it throws that player out of their rhythm. So it was a good thing Canada was one of the last two teams standing at the Olympics.
After two assists last game and a second-star nod, Connor was Connor once again. He didn’t manage a point in the first period, which was part of why it was once again 2-1 after one. But in the second frame, after the Oilers restored a two-goal lead, McDavid personally scored the 4-1 tally. He might never get another one that draws the goalie out of the net as far as this one did, however. Somebody give Darcy Kuemper a map (this goal against ended his night, as it turned out).
Point number 100 came in the most fitting manner: on the power-play, with an assist on a Leon Draisaitl goal. Draisaitl had gone four and a half periods without so much as registering a point, until a Zach Hyman power-play strike midway through the second. This goal might have been the re-starting of Draisaitl in prime NHL form.
McDavid becomes the third player in NHL history with at least nine 100-point seasons, with the only other two being Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. Additionally, with the assist, McDavid now owns second-place in the “assists through a player’s first 11 seasons” list. Only Gretzky had more. We continue to see absolute brilliance from this team’s captain, night in and night out.
The rest of the team is scoring at their best pace of the season
Up until the McDavid goal, the Oilers once again didn’t need him or Draisaitl to spark their offence. Jack Roslovic and Matt Savoie factored in early for the second night in a row, as Ty Emberson opened the scoring. If these two continue to have chemistry like what they’ve shown coming out of the break, the Oilers will have three dynamite scoring lines.
This was also the best night in an age for Andrew Mangiapane, who had an assist on the 2-0 goal scored by Vasily Podkolzin, and put in the 3-1 tally himself. With trade rumours swirling, all he really can do is continue to go out there, and have nights like this. Who knows if he’s still here past March 7, but in the interim, this helps quite a lot.
This observer wasn’t kidding about the Draisaitl comment earlier, too. After his goal, he and Jake Walman causally combined for two goals of Walman’s own. After a bit of an off-night in Anaheim, Draisaitl was right back at it with a four-point night you can expect from him like you can expect good coffee at a local Edmonton café. Savoie nabbed an assist on one of them as well- that’s five points in two games for the youngster.
Big night all around, for both the big boys and the depth players. Walman said after the game that it was nice to have this game right after the bitter loss of the night before, and “get back at it“. You love to see it.
Ingram once again lays claim to the starter’s net with solid outing
Connor Ingram got the rare entry into a tied game the night before, after Tristan Jarry allowed five goals on 25 shots. With Jarry’s run of play as an Oiler being even more lacking than the guy he was traded for, this presented an opportunity. Ingram, having been viewed once as a potential starter, could realize that potential with solid play. He could end up being the saviour the Oilers need.
Tonight proved that that’s a very realistic outcome. Ingram was very solid throughout, making saves when he needed to make them, and as the Kings tried to dig out of their early 2-0 hole, preventing them from completing that task. He snuffed the life out of Los Angeles’s attack, and the offence rewarded him by giving him plenty of run support.
Ingram finished the night with 21 saves and a .955 save percentage. That’s much better than what was being offered during the Oilers’ technical 4-game losing streak, and much better than the night before, especially. Remember: This is a team built to win with regular .900 goaltending. Nights like this, if they can happen more regularly, are more than good enough to help the Oilers win.
Use this game as a springboard for final 22 games of the season
Congratulations, you have made it through 60 games of Edmonton Oilers hockey. It’s been a stressful, up-and-down season to say the least, but there’s some hope now. This is far and away one of the best games the Oilers have played this season, and their best is still super-lethal.
The main thing now is for the team to show consistency the rest of the way. Continue to score at a rate that would make the 2022-23 Oilers proud. Continue, for Ingram, to be the rock this team needs in goal. Continue to not make boneheaded defensive mistakes, and get play moving in the right direction.
The San Jose Sharks are up next, on Saturday afternoon at 2 PM. This has to be one of the more condensed California road trips the Oilers have experienced. But at least this game will be a lot more fresh on the minds of the players, so carrying momentum will be less difficult of a task hopefully.
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