Edmonton Oilers Vs Calgary Flames- Game 4 Morning After

The Edmonton Oilers were able to walk out of Rogers Place with a 5-3 win last night against the Calgary Flames. The Oilers are now up 3-1 in the series.

Last night the Edmonton Oilers got off to a quick start when Ryan Nugent-Hopkins put the puck in a wide open net after Jacob Markstrom fumbled a dump-in. This was pretty big mistake by Markstrom and nice work by Nugent-Hopkins to rush to the puck and put it in at a pretty sharp angle.

The Edmonton Oilers added another goal halfway through the period while on the powerplay. Zach Hyman was in front of the net and banged in a loose puck of a McDavid shot. This is the type of goal I love to see being scored on the powerplay. Yes, this team can score beautiful goals on the powerplay, but they need to score ugly ones sometimes.

Before the end of the period Evander Kane picked a free puck up at the blue line and he skated in and took a shot that beat Markstrom. The shot got deflected on route making it difficult for the save to be made.

In the second period the Calgary Flames were able to get themselves back in the game. The first was a powerplay goal by Elias Lindholm. He rolls in from the half wall and outwaits a kneeling Darnell Nurse. He then snipes a shot up to the top corner. I would have liked Nurse to put some pressure on him, but if he does that the play on the side of the net has a chance on a pass.

Less than 30 seconds later the Edmonton Oilers turn the puck over at the Flames blueline. Then Flames grab the puck and turn it around. Backlund was able to drive right by Keith and was able to fire a shot right through Mike Smith. Both Smith and Keith would like a redo on this, but it was a strong play by Backlund.

If you are reading this then I assume you have heard/seen the 3-3 goal. The shot from on the Calgary zone that Smith completely lost sight of. Not much to dive into here except this will likely be on blooper reels for a long time to come.

Late in the third period, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins restores the Edmonton Oilers lead. A shot from the point by Tyson Barrie ends up sitting to the side of the net and Nugent-Hopkins was the first player to find it and was able to bury it.

Edmonton Oilers Push Flames to the Brink of Elimination

After losing the first game in terrible fashion the Edmonton Oilers have won 3 straight. In those games that they have won, the Edmonton Oilers played excellent games. I really liked how the Edmonton Oilers came out a played in that game 4.

It is good to see that they learned from their mistakes made in the first round. In the Kings series with a chance to go up 3-1 the Edmonton Oilers laid an egg. That was not the case last night. They showed they can come to play in big games.

They also showed that they can battle back from adversity. That tying goal that Smith let in could have broken the moral of this team. The fact that they didn’t fold and they came back to win this game is a good sign of what could happen moving forward.

Next Game

Just like game 4, game 5 is another game where you can’t let the Calgary Flames have any life. If the Flames manage to win game 5 they are only down 1 game and it gives them a bit of hope. The Oilers need to snuff the Flames out.

Another positive about the Oilers ending this game in 5, is the fact that they would have more time for their players to rest. It’s a chance for the bumps and bruises to heal a little bit. This team is rolling with a couple of key player playing injured. They could be better if everyone is healthy.