A Fun night for Hockey
By Jason Gregor
7 years agoThe NHL couldn’t have asked for a more exciting opening night, except the injury to Jonathan Quick, and there were only four games. Eighteen more teams will drop the puck on their season tonight and hopefully the early season fireworks continue.
Rookie Auston Matthews scored four goals in his NHL debut on National TV. It was incredible to watch, and many wondered if Connor McDavid could match his performance. McDavid didn’t score four goals, but he scored twice, added an assist and showed off his dazzling speed throughout the contest.
Outside of Matthews and McDavid, four other players had three-point nights: Vlad Tarasenko, Paul Stastny, Kevin Shattenkirk and Erik Karlsson, and nine others had two-point nights.
Goals are entertaining and we saw 30 in four games. I know it won’t continue, sadly, but it sure was a great way to kick off the season.
It was only the third time in Oilers history they scored seven goals on opening night, and it was the first time since October 5th, 1982, when they defeated the Flames 7-5. The other occasion was October 7th, 1981, when they defeated Colorado 7-4. The Oilers have never scored six in a season opener and they’ve only scored five twice.
Last night was an extremely rare offensive outburst to start a season, so I hope you enjoyed it. It will likely be the only time in Oilers history you were able to see #97, #98 and #99 skate on the ice on the same night.
Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier, were part of the opening ceremonies of the new rink and they took a lap in their old jerseys. It was a symbolic hand-off from previous greats, to the newest great Oilers player, McDavid.
McDavid scored the first penalty shot at the new arena. Gretzky had scored the first penalty shot at the old Edmonton Coliseum/Rexall Place. It is a bit freakish how the night unfolded.
Twelve Oilers registered a point, and surprisingly that didn’t include Milan Lucic, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins or Benoit Pouliot. Half of the players on their top two lines didn’t pick up a point, yet they still scored seven goals. Those three didn’t play bad, they just didn’t get any points.
If Pouliot had any sort of finish in his stick last night he would have had two goals, maybe three. He missed some great chances. Lucic was also stoned once, but he made his presence known when he fought Deryk Engelland in the first period after Engelland hit McDavid. It wasn’t a dirty hit, but Lucic wanted teams to know if they hit McDavid, especially four feet from the boards, he’ll be there to make them answer.
Some of you might think it has no bearing in the game, but if you do, you don’t have a true grasp on the emotion of the game. Emotion is a major part of hockey. It matters, and it will continue to be a main ingredient moving forward. It won’t stop players from hitting McDavid, but it was more about Lucic wanting the Oilers to have a stand-up attitude.
Defend one another, especially your meal ticket. And you damn well better do it against your most hated rival. I loved it.
QUICK HITS
- Zack Kassian had a great game. He was flying. He scored a dandy breakaway goal, he was physical and he looked good on the PK. Big guys who can skate are such a welcome sight. Kassian is in a healthy place off of the ice. He looked like a new player. We often forget the human element in sports and how much a player’s personal happiness can impact how they play on the ice.
- In the third period Patrick Maroon and Leon Draisaitl had an excellent shift deep in Calgary territory. They used their size, strength and skill to cycle the puck, knock two defenders off the puck and then shield them from getting the puck back. The Oilers simply did not have enough heavy skilled players to make those plays in the past. Those types of shifts wear down defenders and it also leads to more offensive zone time. Winning battles — what a lovely and long overdue concept.
- Adam Larsson had some really strong plays, and he surprised me with his physical prowess. He crushed a few Flames, none harder than his solid clean check on Micheal Ferland. Larsson’s patience in his own end and positioning were a welcome sight. He knows how to defend.
- Nugent-Hopkins has to improve on faceoffs. He went 3-14 in the dot last night. The rest of his game was fine, but those numbers are brutal. He was 0 for 6 in the defensive zone. What is most concerning is who he lost the draws to. He wasn’t getting owned by Patrice Bergeron or Anze Kopitar. He was 0-for-4 versus Sam Bennett, 1-for-6 versus MIkael Backlund and 1-for-4 versus Sean Monahan. Monahan and Bennett have much less experience than RNH. It was only one game, but it’s an area he simply must improve. I don’t expect him to be a a 53 or 54% guy, but he needs to between 49-50%, especially in the defensive zone.
- Mark Letestu was solid in the dot. He was 7-for-7 at EV in the defensive zone. He won 64% of his draws, but he would like to win more on the PK in the D zone. He was 0-for-3 on those.
- Kris Russell had a very solid debut. I liked how he moved the puck. He was solid in his D-zone, and I like that he wasn’t always retreating and settling to block shots. He picked up two assists and his passing and heads up play in the offensive zone was very good. He has put up some decent numbers in the past, he had 34 and 29 points seasons with Calgary in 2014 and 2015. His speed to get back on dump ins was very noticeable compared to some of the slower skating D-man we have seen in Edmonton in previous years.
- Last season, the Oilers blueline combined for a paltry 102 points. Andrej Sekera had 30 and he was the only one with more than 12. Their production from the backend was the worst in the Western Conference by far.
NSH: 55 goals and 203 points.
CGY: 51 goals and 203 points.
SJS: 47 goals and 179 points.
CHI: 31 goals and 177 points.
LAK: 41 goals and 174 points.
DAL: 32 goals and 174 points.
STL: 39 goals and 154 points.
MIN: 37 goals and 148 points.
COL: 41 goals and 146 points
ANA: 37 goals and 145 points.
ARI: 46 goals and 145 points.
WPG: 40 goals and 133 points.
VAN: 23 goals and 119 points.
EDM: 24 goals and 102 points.But last night the defence produced six assists. Russell had two, while Sekera, Klefbom, Larsson and Nurse each had one. It was a positive step towards getting some consistent production. - However, as the season goes they will need shoot more. They combined for one shot last night, from Russell. Klefbom and Sekera were on the PP for a combined 10:04 but had no SOG. Obviously that will need to improve. Getting shots from the point, and they don’t have to be cannons, creates a lot of challenges for a PK group. The PP will improve, and it will be more successful once they establish a consistent shot presence from the blueline.
- The PP was not good last night, more specifically the 1st unit. They didn’t have many good chances and gave up two goals. The 2nd unit had some good chances, but Pouliot just couldn’t finish. However, the Oilers would good on EV, and I will take that any day. It is much more important than PP.
In the last five years the Oilers have been outscored 1171-941. They are -230 in GF/GA ratio.
In the same time span the Oilers have scored the 12th most PP goals in the league. They are -12 in powerplay GF/GA ratio. Their PP has been pretty good overall the past five years, yet they’ve still struggled mightily. Of course you want a good PP, but you should be rejoicing the Oilers scored a lot at EV last night. Their EV scoring ratio has to improve significantly more than their PP does. - Brandon Davidson was placed on IR today. Eric Gryba skated this morning and the Oilers still have eight D-men, but Davidson is out. I’ll get an update after practice about the severity, but he is out at least ten days. *** He is out for “awhile” with an upper body injury. Unlucky start to season for Davidson. One of Gryba, Fayne or Benning will draw in tomorrow.
- Larsson didn’t skate today and we’ll get an update after practice. He took a hit from Tkachuk late in the game last night, dropped his stick and went to the bench. I’m assuming his absence was due to that play.
**Oilers fans collectively drop to one knee in prayer hoping it is only a maintenance day.**Update… It was only a maintenance day for Larsson. He will be fine according to McLellan.
- Kassian will play with RNH and Pouliot tomorrow. Slepyshev was moved down. Drake Caggiula still not skating with the team.
THE SEASON OPENER PARTY
After a long summer of arguing and waiting, the NHL season is right around the corner and that means it’s time for The Nation to throw another party. We wanted a second take on last year’s season and decided that we would celebrate the start of the second year of Connor’s reign over Oil Country. Thanks to our friends at AMA Travel, Cornerstone Insurance, the Pint, Oodle Noodle, and United Cycle we’ve got a big night planned for you complete with raffles, swag bags, and two trips to the outdoor game in Winnipeg courtesy of AMA Travel. (valued at $5000 each and each winner brings a +1)
Here’s what you need to know:
- Where: The Pint Downtown
- When: Friday, October 14th at 5pm
- Why: Because we’ve got a hankerin’ for some partyin’
- How: Tickets are available here
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