Yesterday’s alumni game as part of the Heritage Classic was a fun departure from the NHL regular season. It was played at half-speed compared to a real game, but Messier, Simpson, and – yes – even Craig MacTavish all put on a show. Teemu Selanne looked like a superstar and Dale Hawerchuk still has hands. I enjoyed the game very much, but I am looking forward to seeing Connor McDavid play more than any of the players on either side of that alumni game.

Edmonton is 4-1-0 to start the season off and that’s all Oiler fans could have hoped for this far into the year. The games have gotten progressively tougher as all the teams get back into the swing of things. What started out as wild and loose games against the Flames have transitioned to the structured games we’ve seen the last two outings. I think it’s safe to say we are right into this NHL season now.

That the Oilers are up in the standings is a good thing, but there are some worries. For example, the Oilers allow the 5th most shots against in the NHL while also being in the bottom 3rd in shots for. That’s something the team will want to improve upon greatly to see long term success. NaturalStatTrick.com still has the Oilers 9th in Scoring Chance percentage 5v5, but that is very much on the back of Connor McDavid and Edmonton will need to get the other lines pulling their weights.

Of course, if the goal is to have 3 lines that can contribute then at some point they need to get Ryan Nugent-Hopkins going. His lone assist in five games is not the kind of production they were hoping for after the great showing he had in the World Cup of Hockey. Watching him on the ice, he looks like he’s trying to make things happen, but it’s just not clicking.

The RNH line has been playing against tough opposition and they’ve sawed off the scoring chances (as recorded by NaturalStatTrick), but it’s still very much an incomplete line. Benoit Pouliot was taking penalty after penalty to start the year and the team lacks an offensively gifted right winger to play on the line. Kassian is in the spot right now and he’s looking better than he did all of last year, but there’s still nothing to show for it on the score sheet. There’s just 2 goals between those 3 players in 5 games.

The McDavid line is going to score goals. Draisaitl is quietly picking up points and his rotating wingers are stepping up. Tyler Pitlick is scoring on almost half his shots so far. Nuge’s line needs a shot of adrenaline.

The Pacific Division is rife with opportunity. Los Angeles stumbled out of the gate and Quick’s injury takes away one of the core strengths of their club. San Jose has been inconsistent at best. Anaheim is Carlyling their season. The Coyotes look like the young club they wanted to be. And, the Flames are horrawful. At least to start the season the door has been left wide open for Edmonton (and Vancouver).

I happen to like a lot of things about the Winnipeg Jets’ roster, but right now neither of their goaltenders have given them much of an opportunity. That will turn itself around but if Edmonton is lucky it wont begin this afternoon.

LINEUP

The Oilers look to be re-inserting Puljujarvi into the lineup. Davidson is out. Fayne is out. Hendricks is out.

Lucic McDavid Eberle
Pouliot RNH Kassian
Maroon Draisaitl Puljujarvi
Pitlick Letestu Slepyshev/Lander

Klefbom Larsson
Sekera Russell
Nurse Gryba

Talbot
Brossoit

OILERS KEYS TO THE GAME

1) Ice Conditions. It was raining all night in Winnipeg and I can only wonder how that is affecting the ice-surface for this outdoor game. As much as it’s true that the ice is the same for everyone, you have to think that poor ice conditions favour the Jets. Anything that can serve to slow McDavid or make handling the puck at high speeds nearly impossible will be a benefit to the opposition. That’s without considering the possibility of the ice causing injury. Chiarelli built Edmonton purposefully larger to handle the game when it goes to the corners, this could really put it to the test if McDavid’s biggest weapon is taken away.

2) Catching Up. One area where slowing McDavid just a touch might not be such a bad thing would be if it allows his linemates to catch up with him. Good news for Oiler fans is that in the game against the Blues we saw Milan Lucic play his best game yet in Orange. In the final two periods he was really moving and it looked like he was really nailing the timing with McDavid. If he’s catching up and that line starts hitting all the notes together then there will be some sweet music going forward. If that was in any way fueled by the fact that it was a “big game” for the team, then hopefully we can see it again tonight with 30,000 people in attendance.

3) Top Finns. Edmonton is playing Jesse Puljujarvi for the 4th of his 9 games today after sitting 2 in a row. Despite scoring a goal and playing some sound positional forward, the Oilers’ 4th overall pick has not put it all together to look like he’s NHL ready. That can change in a hurry, but his tryout so far has resembled Leon Draisaitl’s 1st tour of duty. Talented player, just not there yet. Patrik Laine, on the other hand, has 5 points in 4 games and looks every bit the shooter the Jets were promised on Draft Day. He’s playing 19 minutes a night for the Jets compared to the 11 minutes for Puljujarvi and opportunity accounts for a lot in these early days. Still, Laine is already a player the Oilers would be foolish to overlook. Puljujarvi, on the other hand, is looking for the spark that gets him going.

Puck drops this afternoon at 1PM Mountain Time on Sportsnet. Game On!

Follow me on Twitter @Archaeologuy

Join the Discussion: » 423 Comments » Post New Comment

» Farewell

» The Most Dangerous Game

» Calling Kovalchuk

» Oilers Sign Koskinen

» Oilers Drafting 10th...If At All