The Edmonton Oilers had it right there for the taking. They had a lead against the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday night and unfortunately, let it slip right through their fingers. This would have been the first time in this short, 56-game regular season, that the Oilers won back-to-back games.
Even on Wayne Gretzky’s birthday, the Oilers delivered a dud of a performance when it mattered most in the 3rd period. Now, there were a few pros to this loss to the Jets. It was a great sight to see the Oilers score not one but two Power Play goals since it’s been a struggle so far this season. Looks like the roster changes head coach Dave Tippett made are slowly but surely working in favor of fixing that issue.
It was also great to see the Oilers take a lead at several points during this hockey game. It’s no secret that so far this season, the biggest weakness of the Oilers is trying to get ahead first on the scoreboard instead of always playing catch up. The Oilers had it but gave the Jets too many opportunities to keep their hopes alive in this matchup.
The Edmonton Oilers need to close out hockey games
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Now, for the cons of this loss. Can someone explain how the Oilers suddenly looked as if they forgot what defense was? Boy, it was truly surreal to see all these basic mistakes made on defense as there seemed to be some kind of huge disconnect.
What is it with blown leads? The Oilers had this game in the bag as all they had to do was focus and close this game out with a victory. It’s all about finishing hockey games on a strong note in the grand scheme of things.
Alternate captain Darnell Nurse said it best when it comes to this tough loss. In an article written by Mark Spector of Sportsnet, here’s what Nurse said about this tough loss in Winnipeg:
"“We did play some good hockey for long stretches,” Nurse said, “but we put ourselves in good position going to third and you have to find a way to get the next one or get momentum going your way. When we gave up the first one, we kind of just let it pile on more and more. There’s things in our game that we can build off of, but when we put ourselves in that position we have to find a way to close it out. You put yourself in a good position and you can’t waste those.”"
The truth of the matter is, you can’t let these games slip away like this. Hopefully, Tippett rallies his troops to bounce back from this game as they now head home to rest up and prepare for the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday. As always, it’s one game at a time with these Oilers we love even though sometimes, they can frustrate us beyond belief. This was a hockey game they could have easily won but what’s done is done. Bring on the Maple Leafs.