There’s a scene in The Green Mile, you know the one, after John Coffey cures Tom Hanks’ infection and he can finally find some relief. That was Thursday’s five goal performance against the Stars. Five goals, only one by McDavid, and all of them during 5v5 play. Sweet relief.
 
Edmonton’s 5v5 shooting percentage has been abysmal, and still is, but in one game they’ve jumped from 31st to 29th and you take every positive movement you can get. Edmonton has done a fantastic job generating shots and attempts 5v5 but the goals have not gone in. They did against Ben Bishop and the Stars and the hope is that same success will be had against the Caps.
 
The Oilers have outshot clubs 262-200 during 5v5 play but have been outscored 14 to 15. It’s a ratio that is on its way to being rehabilitated. Should the secondary scoring from the Nuge line keep the pressure on then this team has a hope. It can’t be all McDavid and Draisaitl. Two goals from Nuge, assists from Lucic and Strome. They need more of that every night. If not from them then from the bottom six.
 
An emerging story this season is the continued progress of Darnell Nurse. This is a player who has taken, what looks like, another step forward. The Oiler defender is another year older and making better plays at both ends of the ice. He and Gryba have some beastly fancy stats to along with their more obvious qualities.

Nurse has attributed the increased effectiveness to an increase in his patience overall. He’s taking a deep breath and making the right plays instead of forcing an immediate play. He’s done a great job transitioning the puck to the offensive zone with his passing and his feet. And what’s nice, is that he’s having success with and without McDavid.
 
LINEUP

No Yamo tonight.
 
Maroon McDavid Draisaitl
Lucic RNH Letestu
Caggiula Strome Slepyshev
Jokinen Khaira Kassian
 
Klefbom Larsson
Russell Benning
Nurse Gryba
 
Talbot
 
OILERS KEYS TO THE GAME
 
1) Russell and Benning. Almost like clockwork, when that duo is out on the ice together, the puck finds its way to the Oiler zone and it stays there longer than it does for any other defense pairing. Except in the last game against the Stars that wasn’t the case at all. That pair finally found some success and both players were engaged in the offensive zone play. Russell was active moving the puck and distributing from the point. Benning was physical and found the back of the net on the winning goal. At the end of the game, the Oilers had 75% of the shot attempts when that duo was on the ice.
 
2) McDrai. Draisaitl’s return was marked by three assists in almost 24 minutes of play. The coach put him back with McDavid and the gamble paid off. If the 2nd line is adding offense then the duo of McDavid and Draisaitl becomes even more frightening. They are a combination of speed, size, and skill that gives fits to the opposition. Draisaitl’s ability to make passes on his backhand, even from great distances, makes him capable of catching defenders off guard. When that duo is on top of their game, there is very little the Capitals or anyone else can do to stop them.
 
3) Unhappy Caps. While the Oilers found a way to win on Thursday, the Capitals were getting spanked by the Canucks to the tune of 6-2. Shots were pretty even. Attempts were controlled by the Caps 5v5 but Power Plays evened them all out in the end as well. The goalie was yanked, the team was abused on special teams, and all told they left the building pretty unsatisfied. Washington has a lot they will want to atone for tonight and the Oilers are the sorry team that has to take them on next. An early goal for Edmonton can go a long way to preventing their confidence from returning right away.
 
Puck drops ‪tonight at 8PM Mountain Time‬ on Hockey Night in Canada. Game On!
 
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