Edmonton Oilers Thanksgiving Ramblings with Kris Hansen
By Kris Hansen
We here at Oil on Whyte want to wish all the Edmonton Oilers fans and fellow readers a happy Thanksgiving to everyone out there. I hope the Turkey is delicious and that everyone has spent it with families and friends. Without further ado, here’s Thanksgiving Ramblings with me, Kris Hansen.
The NHL season is finally underway. We had a variety of games take place and our beloved Edmonton Oilers had two this week, both losses: A 3-1 Loss to St. Louis and a 2-0 loss to Nashville. There were plenty of positives to take into both games: They were competitive and were in it until the very end. Still, the big concerns are twofold: we have trouble moving the puck northbound and we cannot score.
It’s early in the NHL season but it’s still very concerning.
The Great Goal Drought
The Oilers are not the only ones who are snakebitten: our AHL affiliates in Bakersfield also played two games: A 1-0 win over Grand Rapids and a 5-0 spanking from Ontario. It’s some interesting situations between the two teams.
It’s frustrating to watch the Oilers not being able to score goals, despite it being only two games in. I’m an optimist and I believe the flood gates will open up soon but not many would have guessed that the Edmonton Oilers, with so much talent, would struggle putting the puck in the net. There were some chances but at the same time: the Oilers faced two really strong defensive teams and in Nashville, ran into Vezina Candidate Pekka Rinne. Last week I was saying that maybe the Jordan Eberle injury is not as bad since we have depth on the Right Wing, but he was the leading scorer last year and his absence is definitely showing.
Maybe facing Dallas who I still do not think is very strong defensively, could help the Oilers scoring woes?
Player Notes
Andrej Sekera: Has struggled mightily. Which is definitely disappointing, since I was a huge booster of his when it came to his signing. I still stand by Sekera being a good signing and I think the pre season and the first two games of the season are too small of a sample size. People questioning his contract at this point in the season are facepalm worthy. That said, he has struggled. As a player who is a fluid skater and a good puck mover, he has not really demonstrated that. He’s trying to make too many complicated plays and needs to simplify it.
Sadly, he’ll be treated like Petry by people who did not like Petry. Just watch.
Cam Talbot: is looking like a number one goalie and that’s been something that has not been said in years. He has shown to be very capable in those two games despite the two losses. He’s made a few big saves when needed and honestly the four goals he’s allowed were not his fault. Like Sekera though, it’s a pretty small sample size to a start of the season. So far though, so good. He’s been the MVP these last two games and I do not think anyone else comes close to that.
Nail Yakupov: Yakupov finally was able to play on the second line with Connor McDavid. However, he had some mistakes against the Predators, mostly when handling the puck on the blue line. He has a killer shot and I wish he would shoot more. Still, he’s playing a really tenacious game in the offensive zone and he’s been impressive. I think him and McDavid are a solid pairing.
Connor McDavid: McDavid has not had a point yet and already there’s some ridiculousness because Eichel and Larkin both scored their first career goals (and both were highlight worthy). TSN reporters had a segment (the Reporters go figure) questioning if the pressure has gotten to both the Oilers and McDavid. Cripes. It’s two games. Calm down eastern media. McDavid has had some exciting plays but still some growth. I noticed he’s not easy to knock off the puck and his defensive side is vastly underrated. Draws are a weak point but hey, Crosby was horrible on the draws as a rookie.
Justin Schultz: Looked solid against Nashville. Some Fancy stat people suggest he looked bad against St Louis. I was able to wear the Schultz jersey at my school and feel good about it! I’m rooting for the guy. In the incredible small sample size, he’s looked like our best defence man. He even blocked a great shot against Nashville and toughed it out.
Taylor Hall: Was moved off McDavid’s line to play with Nugent-Hopkins and Purcell. He had nine shots against Nashville. Snake bitten for sure.
Teddy Purcell: How’s this for fancy stats vs eye test: Purcell had a whopping 81% CF and was the whipping boy for many on social media in the game against Nashville. How do you explain that? I feel like Purcell gets targeted because he’s not a physical or fast player, but I thought he had a poor game against St Louis.
Anton Slepyshev is looking like an NHL rookie. He had a great camp and last week I was saying how great it is for him to make the team. However, after spending time in the top six, he was demoted to the bottom six duty. I thought he looked overwhelmed in a top six role and might be on a flight to Bakersfield soon.
The Week Ahead
This week the Oilers visit the Stars on Tuesday, have their season opener against St. Louis on Thursday and visit Calgary for a Saturday night tilt.
It’s a rough schedule to start the season as the Oilers will only have faced one non playoff team in Dallas, but Dallas has a strong offense. For predictions I believe the Oilers will break the scoring drought and win a game. I’ll be dramatic and say they get the win over Calgary but lose the other two in close fashion.
Also, McDavid will get his first point and everything will be alright.
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