Edmonton Oilers Power Play Sputters In 4-2 Loss vs. Blues
A lot of Edmonton Oilers fans are losing their minds, right about now, over their team’s 0-and-4 start. I am in the other camp. While there is no arguing with the Oilers current place in the standings, I don’t think anyone who watches this team closely can honestly say “here we go again”. There are notable differences between the performances so far this year, and those of last season. But no…this is NOT the start Todd McLellan was hoping for. Nine Things:
9. 4 games into the season, and we still don’t have a loss we can pin the goaltending on. Cam Talbot was good, again tonight. I did not feel any of the 4 that he allowed were bad goals. I have seen some question the Vladimir Tarasenko tally, but sorry, that was a goal scorer’s goal. Besides: Letestu did not lose the draw. His wingers were beaten to the loose puck, by one of the most dangerous shooters in the NHL.
8. Much like the 1st game of the season against St. Louis, I felt as if Griffin Reinhart and Eric Gryba were pretty decent…without the puck. They both use their size well in their own zone, especially against the cycle. But Reinhart, in particular, is struggling to move the puck. And that is a problem for this pairing, since Gryba has about as much ability with the disk as my wife.
7. It isn’t about the Edmonton Oilers performance at all, but one of the hi-lights of the night for me was the thunderous ovation offered up when Ryan Smyth was introduced. The only problem was that the Oilers clearly underestimated the reception he would receive. The fans were all still on their feet when the linesman finally had to drop the puck. Only then did the crowd sit back down. Love ‘ya, Smitty.
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6. O.K., I’ll say it: These Edmonton Oilers 3rd jerseys are the best sweaters this team has ever worn. The colors and design are just spectacular. I well remember playing minor hockey in a small town, against city teams that always had nicer uniforms than we could afford. It was easy to be intimidated, just by how they looked. We always had to remind ourselves “it’s how they play, not how they look”. Ahem.
5. How long will Peter Chiarelli let this club struggle, before he admits allowing the team to break camp with neither Jordan Eberle OR Leon Draisaitl on the roster was a mistake? That 2nd Power Play pairing is really just Nail Yakupov and a bunch of 3rd liners. I’m not so sure I wouldn’t have Hall and Nugent Hopkins on one unit, and Connor McDavid (who was very average tonight, by the way) and Yakupov on another.
4. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins did not create a whole lot on offence tonight (I think he really misses Jordan Eberle, those two have had chemistry for a long time), but I thought he made the defensive play of the game. It was a back-check that absolutely took the collective breath away from the fans at Rexall, stripping the St. Louis attacker of the puck, after starting from nearly 2 lines back. Wow.
3. Taylor Hall was awarded 2nd Star tonight, and the difficulties on the Power Play aside, I did think Hall had his best game of the season. His goal was a mix of determination and foot-speed: He simply beat the defender to a puck which Matt Hendricks had very deftly pushed forward. At last check, they had not added an assist to that goal, but Hendricks deserves one, who was good for the 4th straight game, 9-and-1 on face-offs.
2. There is a noticeable gap in between the defense and the forwards, when the Edmonton Oilers are trying to move the puck up-ice. Way too many times, the only outlet pass available was 40-50 feet…and a lot can (and did) go wrong when you are forced into those all-or-nothing plays. To be fair, the Blues fore-check was very effective. But count how many times Oilers forwards were left standing still in the neutral zone, waiting for the puck. And it is not like they were flying the zone before the had possession. The D-men just couldn’t head-man the bloody puck.
1. The Power Play. It was 0-for-5 again tonight, and it cost them the game. I am not sure which is worse: The fact that the Edmonton Oilers can not score with the man advantage, or the fact that each time they fail to capitalize, they also fritter away precious momentum from their game. It is hard to feel good about yourself when you constantly fail. And it’s hard to play your “A” game when you are not confident. Part of the problem is that the Edmonton Oilers are playing without two players who should be on their Power Play, but are not: Jordan Eberle (injury) and Leon Draisaitl (AHL).
Yes, Todd McLellan came to this team with a winning power play on his record. But Todd McLellan is NOT the General Manager.
Calgary is next, this Saturday. The Oilers desperately, desperately need a win.