Oilers Defeat Kraken Despite Less Than Stellar Performance

Most believed the Edmonton Oilers had a chance to run up the score on the Seattle Kraken on Monday night, given the fact the NHL’s newest expansion team hasn’t been great to start the season. That, along with the fact they were on back-to-backs and announced they were starting Joey Daccord who had just 10 NHL games under his belt, had most thinking it could be a long night for the Kraken.

Instead, they were able to keep this game close through the first two periods and in all honesty deserved to be up heading into the final frame, as they were the better team to that point. However, the Oilers were able to turn up the heat in the third and walked away with a 5-2 victory to improve them to 7-1-0 on the season.

First Period

The Oilers got things going right away in this one thanks to a Leon Draisaitl tip-in on a point shot from Tyson Barrie. This went over well for the crowd who expected last night’s game to turn into a blowout, but that thinking was rather short-lived when Jaden Schwartz responded with his first of the season less than two minutes later.

Second Period

Once again, the Oilers were able to get on the board early in the second. This time, it was Duncan Keith scoring his first as an Oiler with assists going to Draisaitl and McDavid. The score remained that way for quite some time in what turned into be a very ugly period for Dave Tippett’s squad.

For whatever reason, the Oilers struggled to get things going offensively and had just eight shots on net with little over three minutes remaining in the second frame. It was so bad, in fact, that play by play announcer Jack Michaels brought up the fact that the teams lowest shot total in franchise history was 11, something which has happened three times in franchise history with the most recent being November 24, 2001 in a game against the Colorado Avalanche.

It looked like the Oilers were going to head back to their dressing room up two headed into the third period, but Carson Soucy was able to get the Kraken within one with just over a minute remaining on a nice feed from Nathan Bastian. Many, including McDavid, thought that Draisaitl had a buzzer-beater for a hattrick to close out the frame, but the replay showed that he was instead robbed by the pad of Daccord.

Third Period

The Kraken came very close to tying this one up to start the third period, but thankfully Koskinen was up to the task as he denied Eberle on a breakaway. That miss by the former Oiler proved to be costly, as just moments later Kyle Turris was able to slide one past Daccord on a terrific pass from Devin Shore.

Later in the third, Yamamoto was able to finally get off the schneid as he beat Daccord five-hole on a breakaway. Draisaitl was able to pick up yet another point on Yamamoto’s marker, giving him four on the night. That was all the Oilers needed, as Koskinen was able to shut the door for the remainder of the game and help his team walk away with a 5-2 victory.

Takeaways

• Yamamoto getting off the board is huge for this team. Hopefully, this is what gets him going and helps him get back to the player he was during the 2019-20 season. If it does, this team’s top six could very well be the best in the league.
• While he may have wanted the Schwartz goal back, Koskinen was able to make some big saves at key times to keep his team up in this one. The Oilers were not very good in the opening two frames and could have very well lost this one if it wasn’t for their Finnish netminder. Aside from last Wednesday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers, he has been very good this season with a 2.26 goals-against average along with a .934 save percentage.
• With tonight’s win, the Oilers were able to jump ahead of the Flames and reclaim the top spot in the Pacific Division. With the injuries the Vegas Golden Knights are dealing with right now, this division is wide open for the taking, and the Oilers would be considered by most to be the favorites to lead it by season’s end.