The Edmonton Oilers made their way to Toronto for their first of two meetings against the Maple Leafs, and as you’d expect, both sides showed up ready to play. While the coast-to-coast action may have been exciting, the Oilers ended up losing the game 4-3 in overtime because of costly mistakes and the inability to get a clutch save when they needed it. Instead of celebrating a win that was less than six minutes away, we’re settling for an overtime point and the end of another winning streak.

How could I not spend a minute talking about Darnell Nurse after a dirty, head-hunting hit by Ryan Reaves knocked him out of the game? After trying to wheel the puck out from behind the net, Reaves came storming in and popped Nurse right on the chin, which sent the Oilers defender spinning onto the ice. It was the exact kind of hit the NHL has been trying to cut out for years, but for some reason, dummies like Reaves never seem to get the message.

Having watched the replay a few times now, it’s hard to think about anything outside of Darnell Nurse being OK. The guy is 6-foot-4 and flew around like a rag doll, the collision leaving blood spattered all over the ice. The problem was that Reaves rose as he hit Nurse and made direct contact with his head, spinning it around like an owl. It was awful. While I’d buy that he didn’t mean to hurt Nurse, Reaves could have just as easily blown him up without targeting the head.

The question I have now is whether the NHL Department of Player Safety will throw the book at Reaves as they should. This won’t be the first time Reaves is suspended for an illegal check to the head, and if the league actually wants to get rid of these types of hits, they should set an example with this suspension. But no matter what the number ends up being, that won’t bring Darnell Nurse back into the Oilers lineup. Chances are he’ll be gone for a while, and those will be some big minutes for the Oilers to fill. Either way, I’m just hoping Nurse is OK because that was a scary hit to watch, let alone take.

I love Evan Bouchard. I think he’s a great player who can produce offence unlike any defender the Oilers have had in years. That said, the mistakes he’s making at the worst possible times are driving everybody nuts. I don’t know whether he’s short on confidence, overthinking, or what’s going on — I’ve never met the guy and can’t tell you what he’s thinking — but he needs to crank up his urgency levels by 15 to 20 notches.

Why he decides to coast and stare any time he’s beaten by an opposing player is beyond me, but he got caught doing it again on Bobby McCann’s second goal of the night, only moments after coughing up the puck for Matthew Knies’ tying marker. As far as defensive sequences go, that was as bad as it gets. The Oilers went from leading with time winding down to being tied in the span of a minute, and a big part of the problem was that Bouchard’s head wasn’t in the game defensively, which is unfortunate because that’s the position he plays.

The biggest problem I have with these mistakes isn’t just that they’re costing the Oilers dearly, but also that Bouchard has shown us he can be better than this. He’s never going to be a perfect defenceman, and mistakes will always happen when you hold the puck as often as he does, but I don’t understand why he’s bailing on plays when he could directly make an impact with a little hustle. Right now, Bouchard looks like a shadow of the guy who played so well down the stretch and into the playoffs. If the Oilers are going to keep climbing back up the standings, they’ll need him to get his act together on the defensive side.

As much as I think the Maple Leafs played a cleaner game than the Oilers in terms of mistakes, our side really needed to get a save or two when something went wrong. What I mean is that things happened for the Leafs too, but the truth is that Anthony Stolarz did a better job of cleaning up the mess than Stuart Skinner did. Objectively speaking, one guy made more saves than the other. Once again, the Oilers had the second-best goaltender on the ice.

I’m not one of those people who buries the goaltender for everyone else’s mistakes, but it’s tough in the moment when one guy is making impossible saves to keep the win in play while our guy can’t match. On a larger scale, it’s nearly impossible to win when you’re giving up four goals on 22 shots for a .818 save percentage. This marked the seventh time in 12 appearances where Skinner has posted a save percentage below the league average for starting goaltenders. That’s not good enough.

If I’m going to pick one positive from this game, it’s that the Oilers’ penalty kill went a perfect four-for-four when down a man (or two). That makes for three games in a row where the Oilers have held their opponents off the board during shorthanded situations, and I’m not about to ignore the improvement just because the team lost. On Saturday night at least, Edmonton’s penalty kill did more to keep the team in the mix than it did to hurt them, and that’s definitely worth celebrating.

1. Adam Henrique opened the scoring (1-0) with a beautifully executed odd-man rush after Mattias Janmark found him with a centering pass from the boards that he knocked into the net out of mid-air.

2. Just over two minutes after the Oilers got on the board, Bobby McCann tied the game (1-1) on a scrambled play at the crease after Edmonton couldn’t hang onto the puck under pressure. Instead of putting the puck in a softer area of the ice, they tried to break out up the middle and got burned for it.

3. Connor McDavid restored the lead (2-1) early in the second period on the power play with a rebound goal after Zach Hyman’s shot bounced off Stolarz’s pads and right to him. With the goal and assist, Connor McDavid has now produced 11 points (4G, 7A) in his last four games. Yeah, he also went -3 on the night, but I’m choosing to ignore that for now because having him heat up is way more important in the grand scheme of things.

4. Matthew Knies tied the game (2-2) late in the third period after a horrendous pass attempt by Evan Bouchard hit Connor McDavid in the leg and bounced right into the slot.

5. Only 59 seconds after Knies tied the game, Bobby McMann scored his second of the night (3-2) after blowing past a coasting Bouchard and dekeing out Stuart Skinner. The goal was the result of a comedy of errors by the Oilers defensively, and it really was a stunning turn of events that could have been avoided.

6. With Skinner on the bench and an extra man on the ice, a scramble near the crease saw a shot by Nugent-Hopkins trickle out the side of the net where an awaiting Leon Draisaitl knocked it home (3-3) and sent the game to overtime.

7. In the bonus period, the puck raced up and down the ice with both sides manufacturing opportunities to score, but it was Mitch Marner who ended it (4-3) with a low show that beat Skinner inside the far post.

8. I know the Oilers’ power play got the job done on McDavid’s second period goal, but they really needed to find a way to punish the Leafs during Reaves’ five minute major. Yet, from my side of the TV screen, it looked like the Oilers got back to overpassing instead of the simpler ‘shot and crash’ tactics that worked over the last few nights.

9. Make it four blown third period leads in the last five games for the Oilers. They are their own worst enemy.

10. There’s no game with more eyeballs on it in this country than the early slot on Hockey Night in Canada, and that’s why I’m feeling the pressure to get this right. Thankfully, I’m coming through with a clutch performance that let’s you know the Oilers won 55.8% of the faceoffs. No need for applause, I’m just doing my job.

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