GDB 5.0 Wrap Up: Make it three in a row, Oilers win it 3-2 in OT

5 years ago

Leon Draisaitl, come on down. You’re the next contestant on “Connor McDavid rules the world.” Final Score: 3-2 Oilers in OT

Finally, a home game! It feels like forever since we’ve seen the boys skating at Rogers Place and I almost forgot what their home jerseys looked like. Okay, so that’s an exaggeration but you know what I mean. It’s so odd to me that we’re more than halfway through the first month of the NHL season and the Oilers are only now playing in their first home game tonight. It’s quirky, ya know? With the opening ceremony out of the way and the game finally underway, you’d have been hard pressed to know which team was the one that played last night. The Bruins were all over the Oilers throughout the first period and had it not been for Cam Talbot, this thing could have really gone south in a hurry. The bright side is that good goaltending can cover up a lot of mistakes and the Oilers were lucky to have it tonight. It allowed them to bend without breaking, and that safety net gave them the time they needed to settle in and actually get to work.

As the game progressed, the Oilers started to find their groove and were actually able to start trading punches with the Bruins rather than getting pinned in their own end for entire shifts at a time, hanging on until the storm passed. To their credit, they managed to get the saves and luck needed to make it through those early onslaughts and get themselves back into the fight. I’m not sure why it’s taking some time for the boys to get going in these past few games, maybe it was the anxiousness of finally playing a home game, but, like in Winnipeg, they seemed like a different team in the final two periods than they were in the opening twenty. They were more confident with the puck, they didn’t easily give it up in transition, their passes were on the tape, and it’s an honest shame that they weren’t able to do it for all 60 minutes because it was much better to watch and a lot more for the Bruins to handle.

Even when Pastrnak scored to tie the game up at two, the Oilers didn’t panic and kept battling until the final buzzer sounded. And when it got to overtime? Forget about it. Connor and Leon on a 2-on-1 in OT is money in the bank.

We wrap.

THE BRIGHT SIDE

Huge shout out to Kailer Yamamoto for scoring his first NHL goal, a complete snipe I might add, after receiving a beautiful stretch pass by Adam Larsson that he was able to pick up with speed and cash in on Halak. I love seeing guys score their first and the elation on Yamamoto’s face was pretty awesome to see.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins kept his point streak going with a big power play goal (his 2nd) in the third period that gave the Oilers their first lead of the night. Since having a quiet first game against the Devils, Nuge has turned up his level of play and the guy is really starting to heat up.
Leon Draisaitl won it for the Oilers in OT after he was the business end of a perfectly executed 2-on-1 with Connor McDavid. McDavid pulled a little dangle around Marchand and he walked in alone with Draisaitl and the duo made no mistake.
Add another two assists to Connor McDavid’s pile of fantastic that he’s building here. The guy was great again tonight and it’s amazing that he can made yet another two-point night seem so casual.
The Oilers should be buying Cam Talbot an edible arrangement after bailing them out on more than one occasion during that first period. Had it not been for him, the Oilers would have headed into the first period down at least a pair of goals and he kept that level of playing going all night long. Great night between the pipes for Dadbot as he finished the night with 27 saves and a .931 save%.
I really liked Milan Lucic’s game tonight. He was throwing his body around, had a few solid chances on net, and did a fine job of making his presence known. That’s the guy we want to see. If he had thrown a fight in there then we would have pulled out the glitter cannons. More of that, please.
I really liked the Klefbom/Larsson pairing tonight. They played a lot of minutes, were mostly effective in their own zone, and they moved the puck up to the forwards well. Case and point was the bomb pass by Larsson to Yamamoto on his goal. Solid night for both guys.
Big night for the special teams tonight as the Oilers won both the PK and PP battles. The PP came up with a big goal in the third period and the PK was able to shut things down all night long. Obviously, a massive difference on the night.
Another solid night in the faceoff circle as the Oilers finished the night at 52%.

THE FACE PALMERS

The Bruins had the Oilers running around in their own zone to the point of actually getting tangled up with each other, leaving David Krejci alone with a wide open net.
David Pastrnak tied the game up at two apiece after he found himself wide open in the high slot, using that space to pick the top shelf on Talbot. It was a hell of a shot but there’s no way he should have had that much time and space.
The Oilers struggled mightily with their breakouts early on in this hockey game. Their passes were all over the place, their positioning was off, and they were lucky that those giveaways didn’t come back to burn them. Though, Talbot played a big part in that.
Matt Benning didn’t finish the game after he got banged up early and never found his way back He took a hit and got twisted up but there wasn’t much of an update about what the injury is. I guess we’ll have to wait and see how long he’s out for.
This game was not kind on the Oilers in general, now that I’m thinking of it.
These two teams were feisty tonight and it’s a real shame that they won’t play against each other anymore this year unless they meet up in the Cup Finals.
What did you guys think of the boys skating out through the Walterdale Bridge? Holy shit, did I laugh. I can’t wait to find out of they’re doing it all season.

SCORING SUMMARY

1ST PERIOD

TIME	TEAM	DETAILS	SCORE
No Scoring

2ND PERIOD

TIME	TEAM	DETAILS	SCORE
11:17	Boston	David Krejci (1) ASST: Matt Grzelcyk (3), Danton Heinen (1)	1-0
13:24	Edmonton	Kailer Yamamoto (1) ASST: Adam Larsson (1), Kris Russell (1)	1-1

3RD PERIOD

TIME	TEAM	DETAILS	SCORE
07:33	Edmonton	PPG – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (2) ASST: Connor McDavid (6), Oscar Klefbom (2)	1-2
11:26	Boston	David Pastrnak (8) ASST: Brad Marchand (10), Charlie McAvoy (5)	2-2

OT PERIOD

TIME	TEAM	DETAILS	SCORE
00:37	Edmonton	Leon Draisaitl (2) ASST: Connor McDavid (7)	2-3

#GOODCONTENT

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NATION ROADIE TO CALGARY

Photoshop: @isuckatpicking

Just like last year, it was important for us to try and make this trip as cheap as possible and to announce it as early as we could to give you as much time as possible to get your life in order. Based on last year’s trip, this is a roadie that you really won’t want to miss — it’s an absolute blast and a good chance to get ridiculous behind enemy lines. And since I already know that you want to come, let’s get to the when, where, and how much, shall we?

Give me the details, guy:

When? Saturday, November 17th, 2018
How much? The depends on how many people are coming with you. To put it another way, we’ve got a range of options including single occupancy ($329/person) up to groups of four ($249/person).
Why? Because we love to party
Where do you buy tickets? Right here, friend. But be warned, just like the last time we did this, the trip sold out quickly and procrastinating will be your enemy if you want to come.

Source: NHL, Official Game Page, 10/18/2018 – 10:30 pm MST

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