Tonight the Oilers begin round two in the Battle of Alberta. The team put in a solid offensive effort against the Flames in the home opener with 7 goals against Elliot. Now they are tasked with keeping the pressure on in the first away game of the season.
In the first game of the season the story was Connor McDavid and suspect goaltending. Neither side performed very well and the play was pretty sloppy, but Edmonton got a few breaks from the referees and Connor McDavid was performing street magic at the Calgary blueline, so things worked out for the Oilers in the end.
One thing that didn’t go Edmonton’s way was yet another injury. Davidson injured his “upper body… after Tkachuk slewfooted him then held his face down on the ice until someone finally pulled him off. Davidson left the game immediately and was placed on IR yesterday. That wasn’t the only time Tkachuk made himself known to an Oiler. He also took a boarding penalty after targeting Kris Russell right in the numbers. At the end of the game he made sure to give Larsson an extra bump during a puck battle.
The kid was noticeable despite only playing 12 and a half minutes in his NHL debut. I would like to think somebody took a number, especially after watching tape of the Davidson slew foot. Edmonton went after Engelland after he took a little shot at McDavid. First order of business tonight might be to say hello to Tkachuk. The rookie is not going to make friends with his playing style, and that’s why he was drafted so high. Flames fans will love every minute of this young man’s game if he can figure a way to avoid the penalties.
The Oilers wanted to be bigger so they wouldn’t get pushed around. We saw that the Oilers didn’t shrink when the game got physical. Lucic dropped the gloves in game 1. They are trying to set a tone. I wonder how they plan to continue that in game two. The Oilers probably didn’t mind Lucic fighting, but they would rather him connecting with McDavid and scoring a little. He had a couple opportunities that were created by the kid, but you can already sense some anxiety growing about the lack of production through camp and into the first game.
Lucic brings a lot to the table for the Oilers. He’s the most physical 1st liner the club has had in a very long time. He makes little plays. He wins puck battles. He’s also got an offensive component to his game. He does look noticeably slower than his linemates, but if he can just get himself to where he needs to be then the opportunities will come. McDavid will find him the puck.
LINEUP
Brandon Davidson is on IR, Caggiula is Day to Day, Hendricks is out several weeks
Lucic McDavid Eberle Pouliot RNH Kassian Maroon Drai Puljujarvi Pitlick Letestu Lander
Klefbom Larsson Sekera Russell Nurse Gryba
Talbot Gustavsson
OILERS KEYS TO THE GAME
1) Not So Special Teams. The Oilers top unit on the PP gave up 2 shorthanded goals against the Flames. This particular unit is loaded up front with talent and there is very little excuse for performance like that. I expect them to be much more focused tonight. The 2nd unit created some more chances, but going 1/6 and wasting a 4v3 opportunity is something that has to be corrected. Jay Woodcroft’s PP has been questionable at best during his tenure here. Whether it’s the configuration or where the roster fits into it, something about it feels highly uncomfortable. Like wearing shoes that are one size too small.
2) Gaudreau At Home. Last season Johnny Gaudreau was 2.5 times as likely to score at home than he was on the road. On the road Johnny Hockey (barf) had 22 points in 39 games. At home he had 56 points in 40 games. This kid likes his home cooking. Well, more likely that he enjoys easier matchups from last-change. If he ends up out on the ice against Nurse in the offensive zone it’s going to give me heart palpitations. He had a tough time playing against Adam Larsson and Klefbom on Wednesday. Larsson had him in the trolley tracks at one point as Gaudreau was skating behind the net with the puck. If Gulutzan can keep lil Johnny away from Edmonton’s top pair he could do some damage.
3) 2nd Line Auditions. Zack Kassian was promoted near the end of the game to the 2nd line. Slepyshev wasn’t getting the job done and Kassian was showing lots of jump in his game. This line was stuck in their own zone quite a bit against the Flames and with a stronger right winger the hope is they can spend more time on the attack. Edmonton is short a minimum of one legitimate NHL RW (probably 2). It didn’t work with Slepyshev in game 1, Kassian will get a chance in game 2. He scored on a breakaway in the last game, but last season was a difficult one offensively. Perhaps he can find a home with the Nuge and Pouliot and really take the next step in reclaiming a promising career.
Puck drops tonight at 7PM Mountain Time on Sportsnet One. Game On!
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