Not all good news for Oilers in Kris Knoblauch’s coaching debut

The Oilers might have beaten the Islanders 4-1 on Monday night, but they lost Dylan Holloway in the process, while Leon Draisaitl has lost some money.

Monday night was mostly a good one for the Edmonton Oilers, as they beat the New York Islanders 4-1. It represented the first winning streak of the season for the team, as well as a coaching debut victory for Kris Knoblauch.

However, one of the main narratives for the Oilers so far this season, is the inordinate amount of bad luck and news they’ve already had. As a result, they did not escape the Islanders game unscathed.

The major negative news, is that Dylan Hollway will be out for a while, with what has officially been termed as a lower body injury. Speaking to the media following practice on Tuesday, Knoblauch said:

"“I don’t know specifically, I think it will be longer term, but how long we’re not sure.”"

Longer term is admittedly ambiguous in some respects, but it’s still bad. As Jason Gregor of Sports 1440 put it, Holloway is expected to miss a few months with what is more specifically a knee injury.

This is obviously a big blow for both the player and the team. The 22-year-old had just scored his first goal of the season, against the Kraken, and seemed to be improving overall in the bottom six.

Holloway suffered the injury after losing his balance during the second period versus the Islanders. He slid hard into the boards and did not return to the game.

This is not the first time the 2020 14th overall draft pick has had injury issues in 2023-24. He had to leave the season opener in Vancouver after blocking a shot with his wrist, but returned for the following game which was also against the Canucks.

While Holloway has taken his time to acclimatise properly at the NHL level, he is expected to be an important piece for the Oilers. He’s a big, versatile and a strong two-way player, who is eventually anticipated to be in a top six role.

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Heading in the opposite direction

Just as the forward departs the lineup, Connor Brown is a possibility to return on Wednesday night versus the Kraken. Brown has missed the previous five games, but had a good practice on Tuesday.

Whether the 29-year-old’s pending return can be perceived as good news, is open to debate. This is the same player who has yet to record a single point in nine games this season, and has a -5 plus/minus rating which is tied third-worst on the team.

Regardless, Brown will pick up his contract bonus of $3.225 million whenever he does play next, whether it be Wednesday night versus the Kraken or Saturday afternoon in Tampa Bay. Speaking to the media on Tuesday, he said:

"“Yeah I’m definitely close, (but) I leave those decisions up to the medial staff. I feel very fortunate with the staff that we have here. They’ve helped me climb here and to get back to feeling as good as I do, so if it’s not (Wednesday), it’s real close.”"

Bad news on an individual level

The other bad news is admittedly to a lesser extent, but still certainly noteworthy. As per NHL player safety, they have fined Leon Draisaitl $5000, which is the maximum amount allowable under the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

The fine was issued for what was described as a dangerous trip on the Islanders’ Bo Horvat. The incident happened during the second period, and Draisaitl was subsequently assessed a two-minute minor for tripping.

Certainly it was a dangerous play and worthy of the fine. As per Zach Laing of Oilersnation, this is the second financial penalty of Draisaitl’s NHL career, after being fined $2,569 for spearing former Sharks forward Chris Tierney during the 2016-17 season.

The four-time All-Star is not quite playing up to his usual standard this season. However, he still leads the Oilers with 13 assists and 19 total points.

Overall, the Oilers are hoping the hiring of Knoblauch will see a turnaround in their fortunes. As much as they only have themselves to blame for their poor record so far this season, they are overdue some good luck sooner than later.