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Edmonton Oilers Hold Off Jets 3-1, Inch Toward Playoffs

By Kurt Leavins |

The Edmonton Oilers did not play a textbook game at Rexall Place on Monday night, far from it. But they did get excellent performances from a half-dozen players, and in the end that was enough for the two points. It sends the club into the Christmas break with not only a shot at the playoffs, but with an out-side shot at hosting a series. That’s getting ahead of ourselves, for certain, but hey…it’s been 10 years. Sue me.

9 Things:

9. Mark Fayne played a very quiet game, in his first action back with the Edmonton Oilers after his recall from Bakersfield. And while the team was out-chanced quite significantly while he was on the ice, Fayne stayed away from the big mistakes, and battled hard…to a level that probably would have kept him in Edmonton in the first place. Baby steps, but a reasonable performance for Fayne this evening.

8. The Edmonton Oilers were lights-out in the face-off circle tonight. Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins were both dominant, at 73%. Mark Letestu was 61% and arguably their best draw man Anton Lander was last, albeit with an excellent 55% rate. So they started THAT many shifts with the puck and still got out-shot 45-21? Yep. Ask the the guy who coaches the D-men why that was the case.

7. That was a decent bounce-back night for Justin Schultz. Some down-right mean things have been said about this young man lately. But I have always believed that there is a player in there, albeit a flawed one in some ways. But #19 scored a lovely goal, his 1st of the season, was more assertive in the offensive zone, and more physical (by his standards) in his own end.

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6. The Edmonton Oilers really missed both Oscar Klefbom and Brandon Davidson tonight. They had a hell of a time getting out of their own end. On one hand, it is an indictment of the franchise that the team missed two, raw rookies against a mediocre club like the Winnipeg Jets. On the other, Klefbom and Davidson have probably been the team’s best D-men this year.

5. Leon Draisaitl. I wonder how the people who wrote off Leon Draisaitl upon his demotion to the WHL last year, and had him on the trading block, are enjoying their crow right about now? 2 more assists for Draisaitl tonight, including an absolutely breathtaking cross-ice saucer pass that Teddy Purcell rang off the bar and in. This kid is an absolute sublime passer. To think he started the year in the AHL! All he has done since the recall is score 28 points in 24 games.

4. Darnell Nurse. Against a big, physical team and a withering fore-check, Darnell Nurse played a “big” game. He matched the Jets whack for whack, and only led the Edmonton Oilers in ice-time at 26 minutes! This, from a kid who was playing his 27th career NHL game tonight. You can complain all you like that he is over-used and over-matched. Blue chip players like him feed off the challenge. They love (love) to play against great players. Their competitiveness drives them.

3. Taylor Hall. You know how good the two players above him on this list performed tonight, when Taylor Hall assisted on all 3 Edmonton Oilers goals tonight, and is still listed 3rd. What a pleasure it has been to watch Hall, so far this year. Shift-in and shift-out, Hall has been nothing short of one of the best players in the league, 4th in NHL scoring, and one of the early candidates for the Hart Trophy. When is the last time we have been able to say that about an Oiler?

2. Teddy Purcell. Teddy Purcell was the favorite whipping boy for many an Edmonton Oilers fan the last season and a half. There were those who saw the player for who he was and had patience, and those folks are being rewarded today. Purcell has 6 points in his last 6 games, and was really good tonight…with 2 goals, and a gorgeous goalmouth feed to Schultz for the insurance market. You may recall he came to Edmonton advertised as a player who could keep up with elite-level line-mates. Purcell more than proved that night.

1. Cam Talbot. Well…what can you say about that? First of all, Cam Talbot played like a #1 goaltender tonight. 44 saves will do that for a guy, especially when a significant number of them were of the high quality variety. Talbot looked dialed in early, even as his team was out-playing the Jets for most of the 1st Period. From then on, though, he really took over. Talbot seemed to track pucks extremely well, was always in position, and controlled most of his rebounds. I would stop just short of saying he “stole” this victory tonight. But judging by the roar at Rexall when he skated out as the game’s 1st Star, I imagine a few folks will not see it my way. And I’m o.k. with that!

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The Edmonton Oilers ended Monday night a single point back of the Vancouver Canucks, in the Pacific Division, for a post-season berth. They are within a hair of a playoff spot, just as Santa is about to come down the chimney.

Lets hope the jolly old elf leaves a healthy Oscar Klefbom, Nail Yakupov and Connor McDavid under the Christmas tree. If he does, we could still be talking like this in mid-April.

Happy Holidays to all of my loyal readers. See you in 2016!

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