Top 3 Oilers duds versus Canucks
The season opener was a terrible game for the Edmonton Oilers as a collective, but which three players in particular stood out as duds on the night?
There’s no way to get around it – opening night was a complete tire fire for the Edmonton Oilers. They have plenty of things to work on, following the 8-1 humiliation at the hands of the Vancouver Canucks.
However, as much as the loss was a total team effort, there were still some who stood out more than others. Here is a look at three Oilers players in particular, who played like duds in Vancouver:
1) Evan Bouchard
Last season proved to be a breakout campaign for Evan Bouchard. He finally started to show true justification of why the Oilers selected him 10th overall in the 2018 draft.
However, a big part of the reason for Bouchard’s improved form last season was linked to the addition of Mattias Ekholm at the end of February. Ekholm used his experience and leadership to help nurture his teammate and improve both his confidence and performances.
Along these lines, no one felt the absence of the Swedish player more on Wednesday night. Bouchard looked lost at the defensive end of the ice.
Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft showed his faith in the 23-year-old, by giving him the most ice time among all skaters. However, he was unable to form an effective top pairing with his new running mate, Darnell Nurse.
Bouchard played his part in contributing errors towards three of the Canucks’ goals at Rogers Arena. As a result, he finished with a -3 plus/minus rating, which was tied for second-worst on the team. (Evander Kane had a -4 plus/minus rating.)
It wasn’t all terrible for the Oakville, Ontario native on the night. He displayed some of his offensive potential, with a team-leading five shots on goal and a secondary assist on the Oilers’ only score.
Overall though, Bouchard had a disappointing game versus the Canucks. While he can’t always rely on Ekholm to help him play better, the sooner the grizzled veteran is back, the better.
2) Jack Campbell
We don’t imagine anyone will be surprised to find Jack Campbell on this list of duds. Fair or not, it many ways he represented the chaos and dysfunction of the Oilers on Wednesday night.
As Oilers fans are painfully aware, Campbell had a nightmare first campaign in Edmonton. Brought in to shore up the goalie position, he instead had his worst statistical season yet in the NHL.
The question was, did this represent the beginning of declining production from the 31-year-old, or just a one-off poor season? His play during preseason seemed to indicate the latter, as he played more to the level of what he has previously shown capable of.
In fact, Campbell played so well during the preseason, that he was rewarded with the start on opening night. However, he was unable to justify his reward, as he performed miserably in Vancouver.
Want your voice heard? Join the Oil On Whyte team!
As much as the blue line shares just as much blame for how poor the Oilers were defensively, the goalie still didn’t do his part when he was called upon. He allowed four goals on 16 shots, and didn’t even make it to the halfway point of the contest.
The confident version of Campbell from preseason, was replaced by the more nervous one on show during last season between the pipes. As such, previous concern about if the Oilers had overpaid for him, reared its ugly head once again.
There’s no denying the former Toronto Maple Leafs has the talent and athleticism you look for in goal. However, this is only equaled by an ongoing inability to perform consistently at a high level.
Stuart Skinner didn’t do any better when he took over in goal, but this isn’t exactly reassuring for the Oilers’ front office. Regardless, Campbell still has it all to do, to prove he’s worth the five-year, $25 million deal he was signed to prior to last season.
3) Connor McDavid
Connor McDavid is undoubtedly the best player in the game today. He is also coming off a season where he had the fourth-most points by any player in NHL history.
However, with all the accolades and compliments, must also come the weight of responsibility and criticism. Pure and simple, McDavid just didn’t have a good game, on a night when the Oilers desperately needed more from him.
Not that a better performance from the 26-year-old would have meant a different outcome, but it could have made the loss slightly more respectable. Yes he contributed towards the Oilers’ only goal of the night — on the powerplay — but it just wasn’t enough from a player capable of so much more.
McDavid only had two shots versus the Canucks, which tells you a lot of what you need to know about his struggles to create openings. He also struggled to support defensively, and finished tied with Bouchard for the second-worst plus/minus on the team, at -3.
In terms of a search for any positives, at least the 2015 first overall draft pick showed his usual work ethic. He continued to get ‘stuck in’, winning 66.67 percent of his faceoffs and applying two hits, including a beauty against an unfortunate Filip Hronek.
As a final note, the 8-1 loss equaled the largest defeat McDavid has endured during his time in Edmonton. We all know he will perform much better moving forward, but for one night at least, he came back down to earth and lived like a mere mortal, just like the rest of us.
Next. Opening night roster notes. dark
Overall, while there were other candidates for the top three duds versus the Canucks, the ones selected made a lot of sense. Of course, Oilers fans will be hoping there aren’t so many candidates for the rematch on Saturday night, in Edmonton.