GDB 4.0 Wrap Up: Three separate comebacks lead Oilers to 4-3 shootout win

4 years ago

Take the money and run. Final Score: Oilers win 4-3 in the shootout

I know I’m going to take shit for this in the comments section, but it still annoys me that Taylor Hall is a New Jersey Devil. Any time I see him play, I can’t help but think of how ridiculous it was to have Peter Chiarelli throwing his turds at the walls for four years in the hopes that something would stick. It’s not so much that the trade bothers me as much anymore, it’s just that I can’t stop thinking about how bad our former GM was at almost everything. I’m not going to turn this into a whole thing, this story has been beaten to death in every possible way, but comparing the job that Chiarelli did versus what Holland has done so far makes me feel like we all got robbed of three years of our lives. Chiarelli-related rant over, I promise.

As for tonight’s game, the first thing I was looking for was Oilers to come out firing on all cylinders as they have been over the past three games. Unfortunately, that’s not what happened. Instead, the Oilers started the game by taking an early penalty that set them back on their heels, and gave Jersey the dose of momentum that they needed to grab an early lead. The good news is that the 2019 edition of the Edmonton Oilers don’t give up on themselves when down a goal, a trait they’d need to draw upon a lot tonight, and they battled their way back into a tie game before the first period was over. As it turns out, Edmonton would need to manufacture a comeback in all three periods just to grind this game into overtime. Despite being on the ropes a few different times, the Oilers found ways to claw their way back into the game and that’s a brand of resilience that we haven’t seen in years.

In heart attack time, each side got their fair share of chances to finish the game, Taylor Hall especially, and it’s almost a bummer that it had to go to a shootout to decide a winner. Shootout complaints aside, I’m not about to complain about a win that the Oilers might consider themselves lucky to get.

The wrap.

THE BRIGHT SIDE

@Leon Draisaitl tied the game at one apiece by being the business end of a beautiful little tic-tac-toe passing play that started all the way back in the Oilers own end. Ethan Bear didn’t get an assist on the goal but he did start things off with a nifty little pass from deep in his own end that sent the boys off in the other direction. Leon ended up scoring the winner in the shootout to cap off what was an excellent game for #29. He hasn’t missed a step from where he left off last season.
@James Neal is on one of the biggest heaters I’ve ever seen and I am strapped in to enjoy the ride for as long as we possibly can. On the power play, Nuge was parked in the high slot and was fed a perfect one-timer pass that he fully connected on, but, somehow, James Neal found a way to get his stick on it. I mean, when you’re on fire you’re on fire. If this was NBA Jam, the dude would literally be on fire. Incredible run.
Down by a goal with just over a minute to play, @Connor McDavid drew a powerplay after getting tripped at the blueline. With the goalie pulled for a 6-on-4 man advantage, the captain was able to tie the game for a third time after he fished a loose puck out from between the goalie’s pads. Clutch goal by the best player on earth. Are you surprised that Connor McDavid was incredible to watch again tonight? You’re not, are you? Me neither.
After playing very well in Tuesday night’s win against the Islanders, @Mikko Koskinen got himself a second straight start and I think Oilers fans everywhere were hoping for a repeat performance. While this may not have been a perfect game for the big Finn, he battled all night long and made enough saves to close out the win. The overall stats aren’t anything to write home about by any means, but he had to make some big saves in order to pull this thing off. Koskinen finished the night with 28 saves and a .903 save%.
After coming into the game with no points on the board, @Ryan Nugent-Hopkins got himself a pair of powerplay assists.
I have to give another shout out to @Ethan Bear for the way he’s stepped into the NHL and played an effective flavour of hockey. The guy eats up minutes like Arby’s, makes nice exit passes, and has really risen to the challenge of filling in for @Adam Larsson. Bear played an impressive 23:52 tonight and I’m throwing all kinds of shine his way tonight.
The Oilers special teams won them tonight’s hockey game as they were a perfect 2/2 on the penalty kill, and got two goals on five chances with the man advantage. You’ve gotta like what you’re seeing so far, amirite?
Anybody else feel like the Oilers are far more tenacious this season? There’s something about the way they’re forechecking, backchecking, and scoring clutch goals that we haven’t seen before and it’s causing all kinds of havoc for the opposition. I don’t know what Dave Tippett has been telling them, but I’d recommend that he sets automatic reminders to text them about it every night before they go to bed.
Taylor Hall didn’t score despite 200 chances! Magic.

THE FACE PALMERS

@Kyle Palmieri opened the scoring for the Devils after sniping a shot top shelf over Koskinen’s glove hand. The play started with Oscar Klefbom’s point shot getting blocked and giving Palmieri a friendly bounce where he was able to walk in on an extended 2-on-1 with Taylor Hall.
Nikita Gusev restored the Devils lead (2-1) when he walked into a bomb from the high slot that made its way through a slight screen and past Koskinen on the blocker side. New Jersey really liked to make stretch passes tonight and the Oilers’ fourth line really struggled to handle this particular one.
@Damon Severson gave the Devils their third lead of the night after the Devils a long shift where the Devils had the Oilers pinned in their own zone.
I did not like the Oilers’ start to this hockey game as it took them at least 10 minutes to get themselves going. Frankly, I think they were fortunate to pull out this win with the way the Devils kept the pressure up for 60 minutes. I’m just saying that the Oilers were flat for too many stretches tonight, alright?
Oilers got outshot 31-22 by a team that played last night. That’s not a great look, as a general rule.

SCORING SUMMARY

1ST PERIOD

TIME	TEAM	DETAILS	SCORE
06:14	New Jersey	Kyle Palmieri (2)	0-1
09:17	Edmonton	Leon Draisaitl (2) ASST: Darnell Nurse (3), Zack Kassian (2)	1-1

2ND PERIOD

TIME	TEAM	DETAILS	SCORE
14:12	New Jersey	Nikita Gusev (2) ASST: Jesper Bratt (2), Connor Carrick (1)	1-2
19:32	Edmonton	PPG – James Neal (7) ASST: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (1), Connor McDavid (7)	2-2

3RD PERIOD

TIME	TEAM	DETAILS	SCORE
15:35	New Jersey	Damon Severson (1) ASST: Taylor Hall (3), Nico Hischier (2)	2-3
18:54	Edmonton	PPG – Connor McDavid (3) ASST: Oscar Klefbom (5), Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (2)	3-3