At least we won the Corsi? Final Score: 3-1 Penguins
As much as it bums me out to say, we’ve reached the ‘Jesus take the wheel’ portion of the 2018-19 season where all we can really do is sit back and brace ourselves for whatever twists and turns come next. After taking a peek at the schedule, it’s hard to not to look this upcoming road trip and realize that it’s kind of finish line for the Oilers’ playoff hopes. If they could somehow find a way to lock up six points then we’d be right back in the mix with a chance to make something happen, but anything less than that points to selling at the deadline again and there lies the rub. At this point, if we’re really being honest with ourselves, which scenario is more likely to happen? Playoffs? Sellers? If I was a betting man, I’d be putting Gregor’s money on ELPH being back on the menu once again.
Anyway…
As for the game itself, I was admittedly nervous about how things would play out from the moment the puck dropped. I was worried that the Oilers would sit back and allow the Penguins to do their thing, but that’s not at all what happened. Instead, the boys hit the ground running and pulled out one of the better starts that we’ve seen recently, and they were able to use that jump to build themselves an early lead. Unfortunately, that’s where the good news stopped. As the game progressed, the Penguins were able to settle their own game down and start poking holes in the leaky ship that is the Oilers’ defensive zone coverage. It’s not that the Oilers played poorly, they actually kept themselves in the fight much better than I expected, but the mistakes they made were glaring and they couldn’t get the saves needed to cover them up and that just can’t happen against a team like the Penguins.
This loss is especially frustrating because the Oilers probably played well enough to get at least a point out of this game, but we’re well past the point where moral victories do anything for us. Such is life in Oilersnation.
The wrap.
THE BRIGHT SIDE
- Leon Draisaitl opened the scoring after he and Connor worked their magic on a 2-on-1 that Matt Murray had absolutely no chance of stopping. McDavid set Draisaitl up on the tape and Leon wasted no time of ripping the wrister past Murray to give the Oilers an early one-goal lead.
- I’m here for the eight-game McPoint streak.
- Mikko Koskinen got his first start in a little while and I was very curious to see how he’d match up against the Malkin-less Penguins. Koskinen had allowed 15 goals over his last four starts and it doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to figure out that he needed to be way better than that against Pittsburgh. What I’ll say is that I thought Koskinen played reasonably well, but there’s no way that the Bryan Rust shorthanded goal should have gone in. Had Koskinen stopped that shot, we’d likely be talking about a different outcome rather than adding another loss on the pile. That said, I thought he made plenty of saves to make up for the gaff but it’s the kind of goal that sticks out on a loss night, ya know? Koskinen finished the night with 31 saves and a .939 save%.
- Oscar Klefbom got his first point after missing nearly two points with broken fingers and I was happy to see him get it. That dude is so important to the Oilers’ defence that I almost had a heart attack when he took a slash to his injured hand early in the game, but was very happy to see him come back and finish things up.
- There’s always something spectacular about when Connor and Sid go up against each other. Both guys seem to crank their games up a little bit and it’s always fantastic to watch. As a hockey fan, this is the individual matchup that I look forward to the most.
- Getting 39 shots against the Penguins is no joke and it’s a shame that the boys weren’t able to cash anything else in past Murray.
- Oilers finished the night at 57% in the faceoff circle. Yay?
THE FACE PALMERS
- This loss hurt because it, again, shows that the Oilers are able to keep up with a very strong team in this league but that they can’t prevent the mistakes that turned this game from finishing with points in the bank to another loss on the board.
- Bryan Rust got the Penguins on the board with a shorthanded goal after Pittsburgh was able to cause a turnover at the blue line in their own zone. From there, they walked down the other way and Rust was able to finish off the play with a weak goal to the short side that Koskinen will surely want back.
- Teddy Blueger (????) gave the Pens the lead after he found some space for himself right in the slot with no Oiler covering him whatsoever. Letang fed the puck into the slot/crease area and Blueger timed it perfectly as he found his way into the area to knock it past a sprawling Koskinen. As it turns out, momentum is a real thing and it was a problem.
- Jared McCann added the empty-netter to close the game out and add another dagger into our collective hearts. Le sigh.
- Oilers finished 0/2 on the power play on a night when they desperately needed to make something happen. Instead, they gave up a shortie that ended up tying the game and turning the momentum in Pittsburgh’s favour.
- If you think Leon Draisaitl is the problem with this hockey then please take a fork and stab it into your temple because you don’t know what you’re talking about. Is he a perfect player? No. Is he the problem with this team? No. Don’t be ridiculous.
- WHY IS PULJUJARVI IN EDMONTON AND NOT WINNING IN BAKERSFIELD? Why is Yamamoto able to develop slowly but Jesse is not? What the hell is going on with this organization?
- How about a loss to the Penguins to kick off this road trip? Why not? This bet is going to haunt me forever. As always, you can join in on the #BeetCast win cast conversation over on my Twitter account.
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST PERIOD
| TIME | TEAM | DETAILS | SCORE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 04:45 | Edmonton | Leon Draisaitl (33) ASST: Connor McDavid (51), Oscar Klefbom (13) | 1-0 |
2ND PERIOD
| TIME | TEAM | DETAILS | SCORE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 02:30 | Pittsburgh | SHG – Bryan Rust (16) ASST: Matt Cullen (11), Brian Dumoulin (18) | 1-1 |
| 06:10 | Pittsburgh | Teddy Blueger (3) ASST: Kris Letang (36), Sidney Crosby (42) | 1-2 |
3RD PERIOD
| TIME | TEAM | DETAILS | SCORE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19:00 | Pittsburgh | EN – Jared McCann (11) | 1-3 |
#GOODCONTENT
I hate how Draisaitl is becoming the talking point on what’s wrong with the Oilers.
NEWSFLASH HE IS NOT WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE OILERS
— Travelling Knuckleberry (@RustyKnuckler) February 14, 2019
How will I learn about ice flow then?
— ?☕️ TCD ☕️? (@The_Camper_Dave) February 14, 2019
We’ll be dead before they retire. They’ll be alive a la the head jars in Futurama spewing their garbage for all of eternity.
— Dani (@penalty17) February 14, 2019
Tyler Benson is older than Jesse Puljujarvi (by a couple months). Kailer Yamamoto is only a few months younger.
One struggled to score in the NHL so is building confidence in the AHL.
One has 0 NHL games & is building confidence in the AHL.
And one is apparently a bust. https://t.co/pNocU8kbUg
— WheatNOil (@WheatNOil) February 14, 2019
Beet-free for [ -2 ] game(s).
— Anthony Flynn (@anthonyjflynn) February 14, 2019
Talk to me, Twitter. Tweet at @OilersNation and @jsbmbaggedmilk for your chance to land in the Best of the Tweets.
REAL LIFE PODCAST
Welcome, welcome, welcome to yet another brand new episode of the Real Life Podcast! With the Oilers’ season sinking like a rock, the boys spent this week trying to figure out how we can turn the narrative around to something a little more positive. Can it be done? The boys certainly tried their best.
Source: NHL, Official Game Page, 2/13/2019 – 8:00 pm MT
The thing that bothered me most was Crosby’s smug face. Yes he got the best of McD so far, but that will soon change
It will change when McDavid changes teams.
Bobbi Nicks, shouldn’t you be finding a new GM to wreck this organization rather than downvoting on ON.
McDavid is not going anywhere, if the Oilers do perfect strategic management, we will be a pretty good team in about 3 years, if not it will take longer or may never happen, depending on who is steering the Oilers ship
Sid will be retired by then
Cant disagree with that.
Oilers, played a very good road game tonight. They probably deserved a better fate.
I agree but was afraid to admit it. Gord knows there can only be yelling and finger pointing after a loss on ON. As noted many times previously, there are way more comments after a loss…
Too little too late. Good road game if they didn’t have a horsesh*t record at home.
The heck with it. Free Conner McDavid
Connor has definitely drank the water
R u guys gonna try harder?
“Yyyyyaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhgh sure”
Here’s an inflammatory comment about the poor play of Mikko Koskinen. Feel free to name call me or add to the negative stigma surrounding mental illness in the reply section belowww ?
CCM and CSA approved, my recommendation.
Prefer cats eye due to my eyesight being obscure. One eye nearsighted other eye farsighted. Have to spend 400 bones a year on contacts. Stupid genetics.
Nice work on the first to penguins goals there Connor! Within 10 feet of the scorer for both goals and no effort to check whatsoever. Best player in the league. $12.5MM/yr, but can’t be bothered to slash a guys stick to prevent a goal. If only he was being paid a bit more maybe he could add some defensive awareness to his game. Ohh…maybe I’m wrong here, the pens first goal was a shorty against so maybe on the power play McDavid doesn’t need to be defensively aware, at least not for $12.5MM/yr. that hopeless inability to make even a simple check in your own zone should let everyone know that Sid the Kid is still the class of the league, while Connor the Goner is just a good offensive player who can’t get his teammates to elevate their game. It was clear tonight who the best player in the league is. It’s the one who dominates the game even tho he only got 1 point. McDavid, on the ice for 3 goals against, and not a single word of accountability afterwards. It’s a joke. Maybe Gregor or one of the other ass munchers on here can ask him about his inability to get his stick on someone 10 feet away and prevent a goal. He’s supposed to be the fastest guy in the NHL, but floats by both goal scorers both times. Anyone of the hard hitting journalists on OilersNation want to ask him what his thought process was on the first 2 goals, when he had the best seat in the house to watch the team he captains lose a game ina 4 minute span? Anyone on here have the stones to say “Connor, is there a reason you couldn’t tie up Teddy Blueger‘s stick on that second goal?” Gregor? Can you ask that question?? The fact is, this team was better with lesser players.
Yes, let’s blame McDavid. ?
he can be blamed for a lack of coverage on the shorthanded goal.
But he can’t be blamed for building a flawed roster which forces the coach to play him 20 plus minutes a game. Because the rest of the forwards can’t compete we have 3 forwards averaging 20 minutes a night. They are bound to make mistakes playing that much, and when the team can’t win, mistakes become more memorable. If McDavid or Drai didn’t back check and that resulted in goals against but the team still won nobody would really care. You can highlight the mistakes of the good players if you want, but they are still not the problem. This roster is simply not good enough.
Yes. I agree. Poor coverage but your tirade/ essay on McDavid was way over the top. I understand your frustration about our team sucking but c’mon, McDavid is a Godsend.
https://www.thehockeybible.net/nhl/unbreakable-nhl-record-kovalevs-shift-never-ended/
Both Leon and Conner need a dose of this to understand hockey is a team game.
That 2006 team…yep.
Not to disagree, the lack of accountability and defensive awareness from the top players had been a team problem for a long time.
The other thing to look into is the 25min/game usage. When you are out that much you cannot reasonably be expected to go pedal to floor 100% of the time. This is especially a problem when booth Leon and Conner are doing this as there are two float and cherry picker on the ice ~40% of the time to go around.
Time to cut back ice time and raise the intensity /60. Less TOI will translate to less points (both personal and team) but accountability is more of a scarcity right now.
Elliott for Talbot trade coming soon
now that the jays are starting preseason, i can completely ignore this tonka train wreck…
Speaking of trainwrecks… How about those jays…
Time to trade McDavid and Lucic, throw in a Spooner or (preferably) Manning and see what offers you get back
If McD wants to be considered the best player in the world he should learn how to play at both ends of the ice. He was on the ice for all three goals against and the first 2 were scored by the guy he should have been covering. Sid SCHOOOOOLED him late in the game behind the net…along with most of the night!
It was lack of depth that lost this game.
And the Koolaid.
And the water.
Oooh Yeahh!
McD did not have a good game.
Yup, Connor needs to decide if he wants to be part of the solution or part of the problem here in Edmonton …
Let’s run Connor out of town too.
Sydney vs Connor
one player is 54G and 66pts +19
and one is 55G and 82 pts +16
Thats a differential of 13. How many one goal games have Oilers lost?
“This team puts skill ahead of work” – K. Hitchcock. This is 2018-19 Oilers ….still
McDavids +/- is 0.
I always get a kick out of watching Sid with the puck in his feet along the boards/behind the net.
Thank gord for the Ducks…
I’m pretty sure moral victories pay the bills.
Even immoral losses pay the bills.
Heck even sitting in the press box pays the bills.
That’s the problem: no matter how they pay-they get paid.
So why would they care?
Why do players that get paid across the league care AND WIN?
Because they don’t play for and in front of bunch of spoiled pretentious whiners.
They actually played pretty well for their standards. Of course no secondary scoring.
Man McDavid must be frustrated. That last shift where he’s tackled and then his leg is held before Zack passes it to no one pretty much sums up his experience with the Oilers. Not that the no call came close to costing the Oilers game … but losing … being the only one to generate scoring chances … and being held up. Man that must be frustrating.
He looked frustrated at the end of the game. I feel bad for him connor that is
What moral victory?
One goal…. how many times do hockey teams win by only scoring ONE goal.
# FreeMcDavid
Anywhere and any time, he won’t beat Crosby until he is out of this dreadful organization and this rancid city
Someone who gets it
What’s amazing is nobody blaming the refs.
That’s like an Olympic sport in ON
lol…
Created by and named after Oilers Entertainment Group CEO and Vice Chairman Bob Nicholson, the Bobby Nick’s Burger is as sweet and spicy as the man himself. Layered on a toasted brioche bun, an Alberta Beef patty sets the stage for cheddar cheese, dill pickles, jalapeños, leaf lettuce, tomatoes, red onions and is topped off with some crispy smoked bacon. Mustard and a signature sauce created by Bob himself round out the juicy burger.
READ MORE: Introducing the Bobby Nick’s Burger
“It’s quite the honour. I had the privilege of creating a few different burgers and this was the fourth one we looked at. This is going to have a little bit of bite, there’s no question,” said Nicholson. “It has Alberta Beef, some fresh lettuce and tomatoes and is then topped off with jalapeños to give it that extra bit of wow”
Meanwhile down the QE2 Flames management was trading for Lindholm and Hanifin.
Don’t forget that Bobbi shats a greasy turd in every tenth burger for a personal touch.
It makes me so happy that your “forensic audit” guy has spent his time creating 4 different burgers and doing press releases for it while the team flounders. Dont worry, they proudly use Alberta beef.
With beef raised in Calgary area I’m sure.
3.8% chance of playoffs.
Time to focus on draft articles.
And other important things like whether Arizona can be caught in the standings.
Not a bad legacy to leave behind. I mean a Stanley cup winning team would be nice but a $71 burger is pretty cool too I guess.
Woukdn’t a super successful businessman like Katz not scratch his head and say to the OBC “if you guys are so great, why is my kid on the stage with first round picks every year?”
First round picks are great. Gives something to sell to the sheeple.
Every team gets a first round pick every year…unless they trade it away.
How do you know this?
Where is your proof of actions?
What butthurt media outlet are you peddling these assumptions for?
*this site is ran by top notch software and engineering*
Maybe they are just trying to get rid of you. You have nothing of substance to offer.
I just hope we finally stop seeing the playoff articles on ON. And the worst part is even a high draft pick wont solve any of our peoblems. There is nothing to look forward to. Sigh.
Jack Hughes would put this team into the playoffs
Lol, great, another prospect about to be ruined.
It took about 5 years before M. Lemieux started to lead his teams to playoff and Stanley Cup proficiency . Lets hope next year Oilers start turning that same corner with McDavid and Draisaitl . This year no chance unfortunately .
Next year? Sadly this team might even be worse next year.
Good point Madjam. If any of the “free connor” contributors in here seen the comparison between McDavid and Lemieux during the 2nd intermission, they’d see that growing & leading a team to success isn’t an overnight success. Yes the Oilers need major help in supporting roles and goal tending, but to think McDavid is on the verge of wanting out, just plain shows their low hockey IQ and/r general sense of what it takes to succeed in sports/life in general.
The Oilers need major help in just showing up and playing. The talent level argument is null and void when your top line continuously forgets to play 2 way hockey. It does not matter if they score 2 goals… if their lazy play results in the other side putting in 3.
If you ever listen to the other teams broadcasting, it is a bit of an eye opener on just how bad the top line is at coverage.
Cap hell
ON … did anyone else notice the look on McDavid’s face, the look that said “f8k this, I’m done with these bozo’s”. McDavid’s gone, he will request a trade. No chance he sticks around on a rebuilding / lottery team. He will not ruin his career.
He has that look all the time, not sure how much it means. Certainly wouldnt blame him if he wanted to leave. No way i would want to play for these oilers.
Maybe we need to bring back “single game elimination” to the playoff format…
Take the top 4 non-qualifiers and seed them into “elimination” games before the regular playoffs start. At least it would make for some good TV immediately after the regular season ends.
2 winners move on to begin the usual best-of-7 rounds.
Lottery team.
we’re slowly but surely making our way to the bottom of the entire NHL….again ! forgive me but i’m all drafted out ! Jack Hughes, no matter how talented he is, will not plug all the holes this leaky boat has!!
Mike Millbury thinks this team belongs in the ECHL
Third period the pens smothered the oil.
No rage. No energy. I bet these guys are already day dreaming of golf and fishing.
All we heard about pre-game was how terribly desperate these Oilers were for a win … I can’t help but wonder why they never ever play desperate hockey …
They just don’t seem to have the desire. We need to draft guys that are hungry to play hockey, not to golf.
Once again hitch pulls the goalie when they dont have full possesion! Loose for Hughes!
Never wanted a season to end so quickly like I do now. Eff the NHL
Season is over.
There is lots of great NHL hockey being played if you bothered to watch anything but the Oilers. Sharks and Lightning are on fire.
Meanwhile, back on the farm… Bako just beat the Baby Flamers and now have won 13 in a row. Congrats to the kids!
Right and how many of you blamed Jay W for all the problems last year. I think some of you better be sending a Valentine’s card his way….
Jay W was the “elite” assistant that was going to take the Oilers PP to another level and didn’t, so there’s that.
Last year’s club also didn’t have the talent this year’s club does (Benson, Marody stats). Most importantly, this year’s goaltending is greatly improved over last year’s. Starrett is a ridiculous 17-3-1.
Did Jay W suddenly become a goalie whisperer? Doubtful.
The team is doing much better than
The Oilers have scored 6 more powerplay goals than Jay’s powerplay got all of last season.
Maybe the success of JW with Bakersfield illustrates how important the talent level is on the ability of the coach to make a winning team.
Can they come to and play the last 26 games here?
Koskinen not letting that cup cake on the shortie and McDavid scoring on the PS,might have changed the tone of the game…. what would have changed the tone, is scoring more than 1 friggin goal!!! in the game.This is getting ugly.
I just gotta say that the writers for the Oilers, have had a season off. They just wrote around 20 articles about Oiler doom n’ gloom and eeny, meeny, miney… moe them… Not a ton for them to do this season…