GDB 13.0 Wrap Up: Flyers @ Oilers
By baggedmilk
8 years agoAnyone else feel like crying? Final Score: 4-2 Oilers
Isn’t it weird when certain players come back to town? Last year, it was strange to see Sam Gagner playing against the Oilers as a Coyote and it’s just as weird seeing him play as a Flyer. Having Gagner back in town reminded me of just how long this rebuild has been going on for. I was in Thailand when the Oilers drafted Gagner back in 2007. I checked the Internet from some overpriced cafe and was excited to see that the Oilers had finally pulled in a skilled centreman that could play with Ales Hemsky. I legitimately believed that Gagner was going to help bring the Oilers back into the playoffs. Rebuild 1 was a wild time, wasn’t it? Ah to be young.
Anyway…
The Flyers came into tonight’s game on a losing streak so it was crucial that the Oilers shed the role of slump buster and had a good start. The Oilers were able to do that and controlled the play early (as they did for most of the night). While the Oilers heavily outshot the Flyers (19-2 after the first period) they weren’t able to score as often as they probably should have considering the chances they had. I have to admit that watching the Flyers hang around through two periods, despite being outplayed, made me nervous. I guess all these years of rebuilding has me feeling a little bit paranoid these days. Unfortunately, the paranoia didn’t get any better when the Flyers came out flying in the second period, tied the game up early and took a 2-1 lead into the third. That’s when it happened.
For Oilers fans the third period practically didn’t exist as news hit that Connor McDavid had apparently left the game in a sling after crashing into the boards with Brandon Manning and Michael Del Zotto. The third period passed by in a blur as most people on Twitter were more concerned about Connor McDavid than they were about the final result. The irony is that the Oilers played a damned good third period of hockey and came back to win the game that they should have won all along. On any other night wins like this would leave Oilers fans feeling good about the performance. Instead we are dealt a bittersweet win as we await news of what actually happened to Connor McDavid.
We wrap.
***UPDATE***
THE BRIGHT SIDE
- The Oilers weren’t slump busters!
- The Hall-Nuge-Draisaitl line was really good again tonight. They have a solid awareness of where each other is at on the ice and it shows in their ability to produce chances.
- Taylor Hall extended his point streak with the go ahead goal (his sixth) in the first half of the third period. Hall added two assists and seemed to put the team on his back after McDavid went down. He will have even more pressure on his shoulders if Connor McDavid is out for any length of time.
- Nugey scored two goals tonight, which meant he got to stay up late.
- Matt Hendricks scored in his first game back from injury. I always love seeing Matt Hendricks score goals because he acts like he may never score again. The happiness on his face is hilarious and always fun to watch. Hendricks brings a lot of passion to the Oilers lineup and it’s nice to see him back.
- I guess Leon Draisaitl isn’t going anywhere. He has seven points in his three games since being recalled.
- Anders Nilsson wasn’t overly busy tonight but he was solid when called upon. He gave the Oilers a chance to win and kept them in it even when they were down by a goal. Nilsson finished the night stopping 20 of 22 shots and a .909 save%
- The fourth line was really good all night. Lander and Gazdic were able to cycle the puck, produce a power play, and get a few shots on net. They had a really solid night and weren’t a liability out there. That’s a good night for a fourth line.
- The penalty kill was perfect tonight killing off both opportunities the Flyers had.
THE FACE PALMERS
- Connor McDavid. Obviously. I want to cry. At least they know a shoulder guy? Worst. Injury. Ever.
- Those McDavid/Messier commercials are going to hurt even worse after tonight.
- The Oilers had $13.75 million in contracts not playing FOR the Oilers tonight (Scrivens, Fayne, Nikitin, Ference). This was the second straight game where Fayne sat in the press box. Craig’s on it.
- CONNOR MCDAVID IS HURT! *smashes lamp*
- I thought Neuvirth was going to steal this one for a minute. He was lights out and kept the Flyers in it for far too long. Neuvirth finished with 45 saves and a .938 save%.
- CONNORRRRRR! *weeps in the corner*
- C’mon, bro!
SCORING SUMMARY
| 1ST PERIOD | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 19:56 | EDM | PPG – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (4) Wrist shot – ASST: Leon Draisaitl (3), Taylor Hall (9) | 1 – 0 EDM |
| 2ND PERIOD | |||
| 00:34 | PHI | Scott Laughton (2) Wrist shot – ASST: Wayne Simmonds (5), Matt Read (2) | 1 – 1 Tie |
| 12:59 | PHI | Ryan White (1) Slapshot – ASST: Radko Gudas (1), Michal Neuvirth (1) | 2 – 1 PHI |
| 3RD PERIOD | |||
| 06:13 | EDM | Matt Hendricks (1) Wrist shot – ASST: Andrej Sekera (5) | 2 – 2 Tie |
| 07:40 | EDM | Taylor Hall (6) Backhand shot – ASST: Leon Draisaitl (4), Eric Gryba (2) | 3 – 2 EDM |
| 19:17 | EDM | EN – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (5) Wrist shot – ASST: Taylor Hall (10) | 4 – 2 EDM |
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NATIONGEAR UPDATES
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