Game Notes Canucks @ Oilers: Self Love
By Jason Gregor
1 year agoThe Edmonton Oilers could give themselves an early Christmas present tonight when they host the Vancouver Canucks. A regulation win would move them into a tie with Seattle, although the Kraken have games in hand. But more importantly, it would send the Oilers into the Christmas break nine points ahead of the Canucks. A regulation loss would give Vancouver two wins in 24 hours and move within five points of Edmonton.
It might only be Festivus, but tonight is an important game in the playoff picture.
— The Vancouver Canucks trailed 1-0, 2-1, 3-1, 4-2, and 5-3 to Seattle last night before Elias Pettersson tied the game with 1:20 remaining and then scored the shootout winner. In Vancouver, it is being called the “Petey flu game.” Pettersson hadn’t skated with the Canucks for six days, but laced up his skates and scored two goals, five points, and the SO winner. It was his fourth career five-point game and second this season.
— The Canucks arrived in Edmonton early this morning, but the comeback win will have them in much better spirits, and the Oilers need to bring the same controlled game they had in Dallas on Wednesday. It was Dallas who made the crucial error when Miro Heiskanen’s pass went right to Leon Draisaitl, and he set up Warren Foegele for a one-timer game winner. Recently it had been the Oilers making the crucial giveaway, but in Dallas, they didn’t gift the Stars any goals and were victorious.
— Scoring goals is not a problem for the Oilers. They are third in the league averaging 3.65. Connor McDavid sits first in the NHL with 65 points, Draisaitl is next with 55, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is 10th with 41 and Zach Hyman is 31st with 35.
— There are 33 players with 35+ points and Edmonton has four of them. Buffalo also has four.
The New York Rangers, Toronto, and Winnipeg have three.
Dallas, Minnesota and Tampa have two.
Boston, Colorado, Florida, Los Angeles, New Jersey, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, San Jose, Vancouver, and Washington has one. Eighteen of 32 teams have a 35-point player.
The New York Rangers, Toronto, and Winnipeg have three.
Dallas, Minnesota and Tampa have two.
Boston, Colorado, Florida, Los Angeles, New Jersey, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, San Jose, Vancouver, and Washington has one. Eighteen of 32 teams have a 35-point player.
— And 36 players in the league have 15+ goals. McDavid leads with 29, Draisaitl is seventh with 21, Nugent-Hopkins is 14th with 18 and Hyman is tied with nine others for 27th. Edmonton is the only team with four 15-goal scorers.
Buffalo and Winnipeg have three.
Minnesota, Montreal, the Rangers, Pittsburgh, Tampa, Toronto and Vancouver have two.
Boston, Carolina, Colorado, Dallas, Florida, New Jersey, New York Islanders, Seattle, San Jose, St. Louis, Vegas and Washington have one. And 22 teams have a 15-goal man.
Minnesota, Montreal, the Rangers, Pittsburgh, Tampa, Toronto and Vancouver have two.
Boston, Carolina, Colorado, Dallas, Florida, New Jersey, New York Islanders, Seattle, San Jose, St. Louis, Vegas and Washington have one. And 22 teams have a 15-goal man.
— The focus should continue to be on Edmonton’s ability to repress goals. Edmonton is 22nd at goals against/game at 3.41. They have shown signs of improvement sitting 16th in the month of December at 3.09, but they need to dip under 3.00 for an extended period. That should be their focus.
— Edmonton allowed 51 goals at 5×5 in their first 23 games in October and November. Competitive teams can’t allow 2.21 goals/game at 5×5. In December it has dropped to 2.00 (22 in 11), so they are trending in the right direction. But how much of it is due to Stuart Skinner playing more?
— In October and November, Skinner and Campbell split time. Skinner played 29 more minutes.
Skinner stopped 293 of 314 shots (.933sv%) at 5×5, while Campbell stopped 234 of 264 (.886Sv%)
Skinner has started eight of 11 games this month. He stopped 160 of 173 shots with a .924sv%, while Campbell stopped 71 of 79 shots for a .898Sv%.
Skinner has started eight of 11 games this month. He stopped 160 of 173 shots with a .924sv%, while Campbell stopped 71 of 79 shots for a .898Sv%.
Campbell has improved, but they need him to be above .910Sv% at 5×5.
— The one area that hasn’t improved all season has been the penalty kill.
| Month | PK% | GA on PK | TS/GP |
| OCT | 76.7 | 10 on 43 | 4.78 |
| NOV | 69.4 | 15 on 49 | 3.5 |
| DEC | 72.2 | 10 on 36 | 3.27 |
The Oilers are taking fewer penalties, but even 3.27 times shorthanded/game is only 17th in the month of December. They do get more power plays, and with a deadly PP, it is able to cover up their shoddy penalty kill to a degree.
— The PK was quite good in Dallas. It did a good job of not allowing the Stars to enter the zone and get set up. Maybe it was a one-off, or it has become a focal point. We will see tonight. Vancouver has a very good PP sitting seventh at 26.1% (Dallas is ninth at 25.7%), so the Oilers’ PK will face another strong test tonight.
— The Oilers’ PP should be able to create a lot. It is lava hot right now. In December it is clicking at 45% with 18 goals on 40 chances. Amazing. And the Canucks have the worst PK in the NHL at 67.4%. In December they are 69.6%, so not much improvement. Force the Canucks to take penalties and the Oilers should feast on the PP.
MONTH OF GIVING
Thanks to Rick and Ryan for their bids on the Kingma Lumber Masters and the Royal Mayfair packages. Today is our final day.
Day 17🎁 Package #1: Whisky and Hockey Lovers Package from Trilogy Oilfield and PWS Imports
- Four Loge Ledge Seats to Saturday, January 7th Oilers vs Colorado game. Seats are in Loge 17, “Oily Boys” attack in the first and third periods.
- Guru Ice District for pregame dinner and cocktail pairing for four.
- Two Stacks Whisky Basket:
– One bottle of Two Stacks Smoke & Mirrors Irish Whiskey (Irish whisky aged in an Imperial Stout cask).
– One bottle of Two Stacks First Cut Irish Whiskey
– Eight cans of Two Stacks Dram in a Can.
DAY 17: Package #1: Eye Care and Eye Wear
- One pair of PRESCRIPTION Maui Jim sunglasses from Century Vision Care. You pick your frames and lenses.
- One complimentary vision exam at Century Vision Exam
You can bid by listening to TSN 1260 today. You can text the show between 2-6 p.m. at 101260 and include your name and donation. Thanks in advance. All the proceeds will go towards the MS Society.
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