Last night the Edmonton Oilers won another game that felt unwinnable just a couple short weeks ago. The LA Kings came out ready to play a physically grueling and stifling game and for much of the first two periods it worked and the Kings held a 1-0 lead. Still the Oilers continued to attack and fight for every inch of ice and McDavid was ultimately able to score with Puljujarvi charging the net. It was the type of goal we rarely saw under Tippett but has become far more common place early under Jay Woodcroft.
Edmonton now finds themselves on a three game winning streak and once again back in a playoff position. There is new life in the Oilers and it seems like every player is benefitting. Today with a day off I thought we would take a moment and see who is benefitting the most from the new head coach and who might be on the outside looking in.
LOVING WOODCROFT
Derek Ryan and Warren Foegele: Under the old regime, these two players looked like fourth line fringe players at best. Sure, Foegele was throwing his weight around and Ryan was winning faceoffs but that was about all either player was contributing. The moment Woodcroft stepped in he took both players, promoted them to the third line alongside RNH and the trio have been money ever since.
The fancy stats love this trio. In 23:04 together at 5 on 5, this line has posted a 61.90CF%, and xGF% of 65.91, and the most important, have outscored the opposition 3-1. Derek Ryan has two assists in his last three games and almost was awarded a goal, Foegele has a goal and an assist and RNH has a goal and an assist too. It's the defensively responsible yet offensively capable third line we have been waiting for.
Ryan McLeod and Tyler Benson: It isn't uncommon for coaches to favor players they are familiar with. That has been the case here as both Benson and McLeod have been elevated by their new coach. Ryan McLeod received fair ice time under Tippett but never was called upon to shoulder much responsibility. Contrast that to now where Woodcroft is slowly feeding McLeod more and more ice time on the PK to great success. With his speed and strong forecheck, McLeod is a natural penalty killer and his coach clearly sees it.
Tyler Benson meanwhile has gotten elevated minutes in that he is receiving minutes and not just being a healthy scratch. Woodcroft has been rolling the 11/7 lineup which obviously means one less forward a game and yet Benson has still been the player that has gotten the nod; the exception being last game as Woodcroft likely wanted to get a look at other players but more on that later.
Again, the sample sizes right now are small but this duo on the fourth line, with a skill player (McDavid, Yamamoto, and Draisaitl have all seen some time here) have posted a CF% of 83.33%, and xGF% of 71.98% and have not been on the ice for a 5 on 5 goal against. They also haven't been on for a goal for but for the bottom six we will still call this overall a positive outcome.
Evan Bouchard: It's been a year of highs and lows for rookie defenseman Evan Bouchard. The pros of this player are obvious; he excels and producing at 5 on 5, has a wicked shot that always seems to find it's way on net without getting blocked and he has elite instincts on the powerplay. The negatives have been issues with pinching too much, defensive giveaways and general lapses in the defensive end. Much of the latter I attribute to being young and having to cope with the rigours of an NHL schedule, something he should have been better adapted to last season instead of staying with the team and not playing for some reason. (Thanks again Tippett).
Under Woodcroft, Bouchard is being given a much more defined role. He isn't being given top pairing duties which he has struggled in as of late and is instead playing on the third pairing alongside Markus Niemelainen, a duo that has worked great together in that role. Niemelainen in particular is excelling as the physical third pairing option the Oilers have lacked. In addition Bouchard has been quarterbacking the top unit powerplay. Keeping rookies confident and growing is the job of a head coach and Woodcroft is certainly succeeding.
5 ON 5 HOCKEY: Early in the year, when Edmonton went 9-1-0 in their first 10 games there were still some big red flags that made many concerned about sustained success. The powerplay was absolutely brilliant and deadly but at 5 on 5 the Oilers were above average at best. After the first 10 games the Oilers had allowed the 11th most goals against at 5 on 5 (21) but had scored the 8th most as well (23). Combined, they sat 12th in the League with a 52.27GF%.
As the season dragged on, the Oilers continued to allow far too many goals against and simply could not outscore their mistakes. The total numbers this season under Tippett were 88GF 100GA for a GF% of 46.81%. That number was 22nd in the NHL over that span.
After the first three games under coach Woodcroft, the Oilers have played far better at even strength than we ever saw under Tippett. For most of the second period against both the Kings and the Sharks, the Oilers held their opponents to only two shots on goal. It isn't simply luck, Edmonton has done a far better job at defending their own end. In the first three games under Woodcroft, the Oilers have scored 8 goals at 5 on 5 and have only allowed 2. That is an 80GF% that sits second in the NHL. The first team is Vancouver who has only played one game and scored 2 goals at even strength and did not allow any. The team right behind Edmonton is the Flames who have scored 16 goals and allowed 6 in their last 4 games (72.72%). The Flames have been one of the best 5 on 5 teams in the NHL this season and it is promising to see the Oilers currently stacking up well against them.
MCDAVID AND DRAISAITL: All of these things added up spell only good news for the Oilers top players. With everyone else chipping in more and taking on more ice time the Oilers best players have fresher legs and can focus on doing what they do best and not have to worry about carrying the entire team on their shoulders. That might not mean as much in the short term but considering how many games the Oilers have to play in such a short time, you better believe those two are going to be grateful when they are playing 2-3 minutes fewer a game.
WHO IS SUFFERING?
DEVIN SHORE: Tippett loved Devin Shore. He loved his penalty killing, he loved him at centre, he loved him at wing, he loved throwing him out in every situation... even though he didn't excel much in any of those situations. There were bursts of decent play but Shore got far more leash than a fringe bottom six player deserved. That has come to an abrupt end under Woodcroft.
Not only did Shore not play for the first two games under Woodcroft, but the only game he did play saw his minutes come to an abrupt end. In all situations (PP,PK,5 on 5) the player who played the second fewest minutes on the Oilers against the Kings was Warren Foegele at 10:55. Devin Shore played the fewest minutes at 2:57.
Shore did not have a single shift in the third period. I don't know what Woodcroft saw exactly but whatever it was the new boss wasn't a fan. I don't expect Shore to play tonight against the Ducks or perhaps ever again under this coach.
TYSON BARRIE: There could be good news and bad news for Barrie under this coach. The bad news is that Barrie looks like he has completely lost his position as the PP quarterback on the top unit. The good news for the player is that Barrie has been back on the top pairing with Darnell Nurse at 5 on 5. Barrie actually played fairly well against the Kings for the most part as he helped prevent a goal and help the Oilers break out to score a goal though he was also somewhat responsible for the second goal that Danault scored.
Like every other player, Barrie gets a fresh start under Woodcroft and that will mean gaining some new responsibilities while losing others.
THE POWERPLAY: It's maybe a bit unfair to pin this on Woodcroft as the Oilers powerplay has been suffering for well over a month now but it still looks lacklustre under the new coach (though it is Glen Gulutzan who still runs it). Edmonton had a 4 minute powerplay early against the LA Kings and they weren't able to capitalize on it, nor did they ever look like they really had a chance.
We did see Woodcroft juggle to top unit far more; Kane and Yamamoto got looks, but still it floundered. The new coach has the team playing great 5 on 5 hockey but to truly bring them to the next level they need to fix the powerplay and tie everything together.
Perhaps we will see that tonight against the Anaheim Ducks.