Edmonton Oilers Scorch Devils to Return to Win Column

Having lost four of their last five games, the Edmonton Oilers knew heading into Friday’s game that they had to deliver – and fast. They didn’t disappoint with a strong 6-3 win over the Devils.

Edmonton got a pair of early first-period goals from Drake Caggiula and Ryan Strome to put them up 2-0. And though the Devils would tie it to start the second, Oscar Klefbom and Milan Lucic would retaliate to give the Oilers a 4-2 lead heading into the third. Leon Draisaitl would score his third of the season a little over midway through the third period, and though New Jersey would cut the lead to two soon after, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored on an empty net to secure a 6-3 win for the Oilers.

The game also marked Hockey Fights Cancer night, as well as Devils forward Brian Boyle’s first game since being diagnosed with leukemia in September.

Not only did the team appear faster, but they played a smarter, more disciplined game, which ultimately helped them in route to their victory. In addition, they didn’t let off the gas and dominated with the puck, while also putting up an aggressive, physical front at both ends of the rink. Here is everything to take away from Edmonton’s win.

Edmonton Oilers

Contributions from the Lineup

Again, Connor McDavid led the charge on the forward lines, racking up three assists Friday. However, the team also got standout performances from Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Drake Caggiula, who had multi-point games, as well as Ryan Strome, Milan Lucic and Anton Slepyshev. The Oilers needed more scoring from players beyond the first line, and the forwards stepped up to the task.

On the blue line, Adam Larsson proved to be the team’s best defenceman. The former Devil led all Edmonton skaters with 27:03 TOI, as well as 13 hits and six shot blocks. He also picked up a helper and completely dominated against his former team. Oscar Klefbom was also solid on the backend, registering a goal, five shots, two hits and two shot blocks. Kris Russell had five blocks and Eric Gryba had five hits.

Cam Talbot was strong between the pipes, stopping 31 of 34 shots to finish with a .912 save percentage on the night. Not only did he make a lot of strong saves, but he again appeared confident between the pipes. Thankfully for him, he seemed to get a lot more help from his blue line than he had in previous games.

Next: Edmonton Oilers: How They Can Improve

Next Up

The Oilers are now 4-7-1 to start the season, and though they still have a lot of work to do to get back on track and prove their playoff worth, a win over the red-hot Devils (9-3) is a good start. Edmonton will play Detroit next Sunday.