GDB Game Notes: Oilers @ Rangers

The Oilers are one of five teams still undefeated to open the 2019-20 season. They’ll look to keep their early-season streak rolling this afternoon as they head to Madison Square Garden for a matinee game with the New York Rangers.

1. Starting a season 5-0 would be something we haven’t seen from the Oilers since their glory days. The last time the team started 5-0 was in 1985-86 when they went 56-17-7 on the season. The team’s best-ever start to the season came in the previous season when they didn’t lose a game until Nov. 11. They started that season off with a 12-0-3 record and would go on to put up a 49-20-11 record on the season and win their second-ever Stanley Cup.

2. The other three teams who are still undefeated on the season are the @Colorado Avalanche, @Philadelphia Flyers, @Carolina Hurricanes, and @New York Rangers. The @Buffalo Sabres and St. Louis Blues haven’t yet lost in regulation but they got dropped in overtime earlier this season, so they aren’t technically undefeated, but they have points in all of their games.

3. Obviously, nobody expects the Oilers to rip through the season as they did in the 1980s all the way to a Stanley Cup run. But wins are wins and getting off to a good start is critical for the Oilers to sneak into the playoffs. This isn’t a bold take by any stretch, but it’s much easier to make the playoffs if you build up a lead in the standings early on. Jumping over teams in a league that features three-point games fairly frequently is very difficult.

4. A key to Edmonton’s early-season success has been their potent offence. The team has 18 goals through four games which puts them at seventh in the league while their 4.25 goals-per-game ranks them in fifth in the league. The offence has taken the pressure off of @Mike Smith and @Mikko Koskinen to be great. Oilers’ goaltenders have combined for a .902 save percentage through four games.

5. While the Oilers are scoring a lot of goals early on, the issue of being top-heavy is still a thing. Eight of Edmonton’s goals have come from the trio of @Connor McDavid, @Leon Draisaitl, and @Zack Kassian. Seven more have come from the red-hot @James Neal, and five of those are on the power play. @Joakim Nygard and @Darnell Nurse have the team’s other two goals. The Oilers need to get a little more depth scoring from down the lineup in order to continue being a top team offensively.

6. The power play has been massive for the Oilers early on this season. The team is scoring on 40 percent of their chances with the man advantage, which puts them fourth in the league. The teams ahead of them? The aforementioned undefeated teams, Buffalo (without a loss in regulation in this case), Philadelphia, and New York.

7. A team with this much skill should absolutely have a good power play. Back when the Oilers made the playoffs in 2016-17, the power play played a major role. The 2016-17 Oilers had the league’s fifth-best power play, scoring on 22.86 percent of their chances. Going back to having one of the league’s most effective power plays as they did in their playoff season would be huge for the Oilers this year.

8. The Oilers ranked ninth on the man advantage last year, so just keeping up that level of success would be ideal. The thing that really plagued them last year was their penalty kill. The Oilers were 30th in penalty kill efficiency, killing off just 74.8 percent of their penalties. It’s only been four games, but Edmonton’s penalty kill has been excellent this year as they’ve allowed just one goal against on 13 chances. This is something the defensively-oriented Dave Tippett has been known for during his career and it’s certainly working so far.

9. As I mentioned earlier, the Rangers are undefeated on the season. Of course, it’s only been two games, but their off-season acquisitions have been paying off so far. @Artemi Panarin, who inked an $81,500,000 deal this summer, has four points through two games. @Jacob Trouba, who the Rangers acquired from the Jets, also has four points. The duo of Panarin and @Mika Zibanejad have six of New York’s 10 goals this year.

10. Goaltending is the real strength of the Rangers. @Henrik Lundqvist might be past his prime but he’s still an excellent goaltender. He stopped 33 of 37 shots the Jets threw at him in the team’s season opener. The heir apparent, Alexandar Georgiev, stopped 31 of 32 shots the Senators took in the team’s second game. Georgiev owns a .916 save percentage over his 44-game NHL career and will likely see a bigger load this year. That said, it’ll be the veteran Lundqvist facing Mike Smith this afternoon.