Bad News: Edmonton is dead last in the Pacific. Again.
Good News: They are still somehow only 4 points out of a playoff spot.
Yes, the Pacific division is probably the worst in all of Hockey and Edmonton is a proud member of the group pulling everyone down. All that matters is that unlike Colorado who is just 1 point behind them, the Oilers still have hope for the post-season. The season is not dead yet, but if they cant start picking up points then it wont be long before they are.
One of the themes we’ve been hearing this week is that moral victories don’t count for much anymore. Frankly, they shouldn’t have been counting for much the past 3 years. At some point real franchises start caring about Wins and Losses. Finally it feels like the Oilers, as an organization, are starting to prioritize results more than teaching opportunities.
Part of the challenge is that goaltending has been steadily slipping from the de facto starter, Cam Talbot. He has played 10 games and it’s a pretty horrible split between the first 5 and the last 5 games from him.
G1-G5: 127 saves, 138 shots against - .920 sv%
G6-G10: 108 saves, 124 shots against - .871 sv%
Talbot started off doing exactly what he was supposed to do. He was the player the Oilers thought they were getting. The last 5 games he’s been thoroughly horrible. He gets back into action tonight but he needs to prove that he can be the go-to netminder for the team. One 5 game stretch shouldn’t be enough to destroy his confidence.
He did have a stretch like this last year with New York and he bounced back. The Oilers need him to do that again this year. He can obviously play well because he’s already done it in the NHL last year and early in this one.
LINEUP
The Oilers are sitting Davidson in this one and Fayne returns to the lineup. It’s not clear if this is the reason why, but Davidson did get hit in the hand by the puck on the Kessel goal. If he’s injured the Oilers have been quiet. Talbot draws back in to the rotation in net.
Hall Draisaitl Eberle Pouliot RNH Yakupov Hendricks Letestu Purcell Lander Miller Pakarinen
Nurse Sekera Klefbom Fayne Reinhart Gryba Talbot
OILERS KEYS TO THE GAME
1) Finally Fayne. When Mark Fayne was taken out of the lineup for Davidson, I was expecting it would be for 1 game. Davidson played pretty well and even added offense. The knock on Fayne was that he wasn’t making enough plays. He was more passenger than driver. This could not have been easy for the veteran defender. I supported the decision to sit him despite the fact that he has great possession metrics. He needs to show the staff he belongs in the games ahead of Davidson.
2) First Past The Post. Even though they lost the last game 2-1, it wasn’t for a lack of offensive opportunities. The post bailed out the Penguins at least 4 times in that game. Nuge, Yak, Draisaitl, and Purcell all beat the tender but not his best friend. Before the feeling in the room gets too low, the team needs to remember they were in the last game and a half an inch one way or the other might have lead to a very different result.
3) Don’t Take Your Eyes Off Kane. Patrick Kane is currently 3rd in the NHL with 19 points in 14 games. What makes this somehow even more impressive is that the next closest Blackhawk only has 12 points. He’s leading his team by 7 points! He has 16 more shots than the next closest player on his team. On a team with a very talented top 6, he stands out as the one you have to key in on. Puck drops tonight at 6PM Mountain Time on Sportsnet. Get Better, Connor!
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