|
Oilers Beat The Bruins 3-2 In OT: I Have Thoughts |
|
|
|
|
|
Don't look now but the Edmonton Oilers are over .500.
Cam Talbot bailed the team out in the first period, Yamamoto scored a beautiful first NHL goal and Leon and McDavid did their thing in OT. Best of all every line showed up... at least for a bit.
1ST PERIOD
Maybe the team needs to switch from playing kum by yah to speed metal before games start or go to bed an hour earlier the night before. Somehow this team has to find a way to play first periods.
While the Bruins came out hard and firing on all cylinders the Oilers had nothing in the way of push back. Nobody was moving their feet allowing the Bruins to maintain pressure in the Oilers zone. At one point shots were 11-1 in favour of Boston. At 5 on 5 the Bruins generated 5 HDCF compared to the Oilers 2...and to give Edmonton 2 I feel is being generous.
Had it not been for Cam Talbot this game could have been over by the second but Talbot did everything he could to keep this team in the game. Talbot stopped all 12 shots in the first period, including a few good chances the Bruins had on the powerplay. Cam was calm and never looked out of place in his crease.
The only other thing to say about the first period is injuries. Matt Benning laid a solid hit against David Backes. The hit was higher but Backes had his head down and I would next expect any conversation regarding suspension.
Shortly after this both Benning and Rattie went down the ice due to differing injuries. Benning allegedly suffered a concussion while Rattie seemed to be nursing his hand.
2ND PERIOD
Whatever was said (or thrown) during intermission seemed to work as the team came alive in the second. This period was the first time so far this season I noticed all four forward lines in a good way.
McLellan had to mix up his lines due to being short a couple men but a few combinations were clicking well for Edmonton.
The Oilers finally look like they have a third line. Lucic and Strome both play a style of hockey which slows the game down. Neither are high event rushing players but they compliment each other well, making the simple play and getting pucks in deep. Yamamoto benefitted from the reduced competition and was buzzing even before his goal.
Kassian finally showed up in a good way and was moving his feet well and was a noticable physical presence. Due to the Rattie injury Kassian ended up with some ice time with McDavid and helped to keep the play alive.
Puljujarvi had an up and down game. He, Rieder, and Draisaitl almost connected a few times and produced some decent chances. Early in the second period Draisaitl made a pass to Rieder who one timed the puck for a scoring chance. Puljujarvi also had a couple bad giveaways but so far McLellan is keeping the Finn in the top 6.
Despite generating some solid chances the Bruins got on the board first. Bouchard and Kassian got jumbled up on a play leaving Krejci open to bury an open netter past the Oilers.
Only a couple short minutes later Yamamoto would finally earn his first NHL goal on a thing of beauty. Larsson made a brilliant pass to Yamamoto who streaked in burying the puck over Halak’s right shoulder.
3RD PERIOD
The Oilers would go back to work on the PP as Ryan Nugent Hopkins would collect a shot that rebounded off the back boards and make it a 2-1 game. Still the 5 lefty PP annoys me to no end but right now it is producing at a strong pace.
Pastrnak buried a laser past Talbot to tie the game up. The team traded a few chances back and forth but the game went to overtime.
OT
What else needs to be said. Draisaitl’s 8.5 million dollar contract is still a point of contention for many fans but having Leon and Connor in OT has been a direct cause of a number of OT wins.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The Oilers need to figure out first periods but they brought back the same pace they had in Winnipeg through the final two frames. If someone was to tell you at the beginning of the year the Oilers would be 3-2 after the first 5 games you would probably take it.
I thought Klefbom quietly had his best game so far. He played a team leading 28:04, had a few strong looks on the PP and was effective against the Bruins top line, stripping them of the puck on a number of occassions.
Not to be left out Nurse is looking better than he ever has this season. In prior years Nurse would try and chip in on the play, misread the play and the puck would be going the other way. Now Nurse is moving the puck up himself with confidence and is no longer making those rookie mistakes.
Credit where credit is due… Russell also stepped up in a big way. Russell has the tools to be a top 4 defenceman at times…. when Russell is skating quickly and shooting in the offensive zone he looks strong. I see him have games like he did against the Bruins maybe one out of every 10.
It is odd to worry about a player scoring at over a ppg pace but Draisaitl is starting to concern me. He looks downright lost at some times during the games, isn’t moving his feet enough on defense, and has yet to look dangerous…. Excluding whenever he is with McDavid.
No word yet on how long Rattie or Benning will be out but both have been ruled out for Saturday's game against the Predators. Garrisson will draw in on the third pairing and Caggiula will slot back in somewhere. The Preds are the top of the Central Division right now so there is no opportunity for the Oilers to let off the gas.
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»