That was it.
That was the game I have been waiting to see this team put together. Whatever was said in that players only meeting clearly had some effect because the moment the puck dropped the Edmonton Oilers were focused and intent on winning. Remember a couple of weeks ago when I posted this little graphic about how the Flames completely outplayed and unpossessed the Edmonton Oilers? Here it is again:
And here is the graphic from last night's game:
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Edmonton outshot the Islanders 18-4 in the first period. I don't even need to go back and double check to know that is the most first period shots Edmonton has had this season while also the fewest shots against. The Oilers were intelligently aggressive and threw everything and the kitchen sink at Sorokin. Special teams got the Oilers ahead in the first with a patented Leon Draisaitl powerplay goal as well as a short-handed goal from Yamamoto after some great PK work by both he and McDavid. McDavid would assist on the goal, giving him his 500th career assist.
Let's talk about that for a moment because sometimes I think we forget how astounding Connor McDavid is. McDavid reached the 500 assist mark in his 527th game, making him the 5th fastest player in NHL history to reach that mark. Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Peter Stastny Bobby Orr, Connor McDavid. Unbelievable.
Considering McDavid and Draisaitl are the dynamic duo of the Edmonton Oilers it shouldn't be surprising that Draisaitl also recorded his 400th career assist on a great pass to put Hyman on a breakaway for the goal that made it 4-2. Draisaitl is an unbelievable talent as well, scoring his 400th assist in his 596th game but just goes to highlight how big the gap is between McDavid and everyone else.
Back to Yamamoto for a moment, he had himself a game and looked like the Yamamoto of the second half of last season; tenacious, strong forechecker, and a quick release. That is the player Edmonton needs him to be going down the stretch.
Another player rewarded for their hard work was Dylan Holloway who apparently has a thing against New York as both of his NHL goals have come against New York teams. His goal, which would go on to be the game winner, was a result of strong board play by Holloway, protecting the puck well and moving his feet to get in position for a great shot. Holloway is beginning to look more confident and looks like he feels more comfortable handling the puck himself. His blazing speed with the puck was one of the key reasons he was a higher first round pick and we are starting to see that more.
While Holloway will get most of the attention on that goal, the entire play began with Philip Broberg carrying in the puck and activating smartly in the offensive end. I still think that if there is a trade to bring in an established top end player with Broberg having to go the other way I would pull the trigger. That being said, if he can string together more games like the one he had against the Islanders he would be a very useful player for Edmonton.
It wasn't a perfect game for the Oilers. The first goal against was a result of a turnover in the neutral zone, followed by some weak coverage by Kulak and Barrie and the second goal against was Edmonton failing to clear their own zone when they had possession. Both goals were well placed redirections (the first being a double redirection by Barrie and then Barzal) and I don't fault Campbell who played a solid game for Edmonton and I am very happy to see him get the W. Turnovers and giving up possession is going to happen in every game. Hockey is a fast game with ever changing situations and every team will cough up a puck at some point in a game. The key is limiting though types of plays and recovering quickly when a mistake is made which is exactly what the Oilers did.
Shots for ended up being 38-22 for Edmonton. Scoring chances were 40-15 in their favor and my favorite stat, total high danger chances was 20-0 for the Edmonton Oilers. If you were a reporter for Sportsnet you might be asking what the final hits counter was. It was 44-25 for the Islanders. Good. This is why hits are such an inconsistent stat to use. The Islanders hit more in that game not because they were "imposing their will" but because the Oilers had the puck far more than they did and they needed to try and get it back. I would far rather see Edmonton play a high possession game than trying to rack up a hit count.
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Breaking a 5 game losing streak at home is good. The way that the Edmonton Oilers played to earn that win is great but this means nothing if they don't come out the exact same way against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday, and against the Kings on the road on Monday, and the Ducks on Wednesday, and the Sharks on Friday.... you get the picture.
If Edmonton comes out flat against the Avalanche than all this will be is another small positive blip on the season; another high with an inevitable fall on the rollercoaster that this season has been. One good win won't change how fans should view this team but if Edmonton can string together a good run in January... it's at least a start.
Thanks for reading.
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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