After picking up a big win on Thursday in Nashville, the Edmonton Oilers had a quick stop at home before heading down the highway to beat the Calgary Flames 4-2 and claim victory in the second Battle of Alberta of the season.
I don’t think I’m talking out of school when I say that the Oilers have struggled to string wins together this year. The boys have won a couple in a row on two different occasions, but we have yet to see Edmonton really get themselves streaking. Winning one and losing one is the exact kind of stat that has to change if the Oilers are going to climb back to the top of the Pacific Division standings. And while beating Calgary only puts this current run at two in a row, it was a target they couldn’t afford to miss.
So when Leon Draisaitl opened the scoring with a backhander only 20 seconds into the first period, it was a dream start for the Oilers. Just like Thursday’s win over the Predators, the first line provided a goal on their first shift of the night and really set the tone for what ended up as a tremendous period for Edmonton. By the time Jeff Skinner scored to make it a two-goal lead near the midway point of the frame, it looked like Edmonton might have a lane to run away with it.
But as they’ve done so many times before, the Hockey Gords kept us humble with an early PK that resulted in a goal for Anthony Mantha, halving the lead and dragging the Flames back in the fight. To make matters worse, Mantha’s goal gave Calgary life, and the game flowed back and forth much more evenly after that than it had been earlier. I’d even argue that Stuart Skinner was Edmonton’s best player in the middle frame, and had it not been for him, the Oilers would have found themselves in a tie game or worse.
Up by a goal with 20 minutes to play, the Oilers had to get back on their horse and score the next one. Early in the game, they looked like their only goal was dominance, but the urgency faded for some reason as the second period played out. Unfortunately, the start of the third period wasn’t much better. Once again, the Flames had more jump in their step and used it to maintain zone pressure until eventually securing the tying goal on a long-distance marker by Yegor Sharangovich. And just like that, the Oilers went from being in control of this thing to in a tie game and fighting for their lives.
The good news is that the Oilers didn’t crumble after the Flames tied the game. In fact, that second Calgary goal actually seemed to be what they needed to get their asses back in gear. With the risk of blowing their two-goal lead staring them in the face, the Oilers finally converted on their third power play opportunity of the night after a beautiful passing play by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Leon Draisaitl put Zach Hyman behind the defence and in alone with Dan Vladar. It was a bang-bang play that was as beautiful as it was deadly.
Just over nine minutes after Hyman restored the lead, Mattias Janmark locked in the result with an empty-netter in the dying seconds to pull the Oilers a game over .500 for the first time this season. By no means was this a perfect game for the Oilers, but the important part was that they weathered storms well and found a way to bend without breaking — sometimes you need to find a way to win the greasy ones.
Without Connor McDavid in the lineup, the team needs other players to step up, and they’ve gotten that for the second straight game. That’s a fantastic story given how grim the mood was around here after last Monday’s loss to the Blue Jackets. That said, Oilers fans tend to have a short memory and we’ll see if the good times can keep rolling Monday with the Devils in town. That’s a very strong opponent to face on the second half of a back-to-back set, but the flip side is that the Oilers are starting to make us believe again.
That’s a great place to be, especially after a much-needed win over our rivals down south.

OTHER THINGS WORTH MENTIONING…

  • It only took Leon Draisaitl 20 seconds to get the Oilers on the board (1-0) after Podkolzin found him wide-open in front of the net with more than enough time to rip a backhander up and over Vladar. That shot had some violence on it, and as far as starts go, it doesn’t get much better than this. This goal was the seventh-fastest ever scored to kick off a Battle of Alberta, and it makes sense given that Draisaitl’s warlord mode has clearly been engaged with McDavid out of the lineup. For the second straight game, Draisaitl put three points on the board and was a major factor in leading his team to victory.
  • Jeff Skinner put the Oilers up by two (2-0) on the back of a pretty give-and-go with Zach Hyman before sinking his own rebound through Vladar’s legs while sliding behind the net. I don’t know how he got his stick on that puck to pull it through the goalie, but what a tremendous second effort by Skinner for his third goal of the year.
  • Were you surprised that Anthony Mantha scored a power play goal (2-1) against the Oilers’ disastrous penalty kill? You weren’t, were you? The goal was challenged for being a high stick a first, giving us hope that the PK curse would take a break, but it was not meant to be as the review was more or less inconclusive.
  • Yegor Sharangovich tied the game (2-2) early in the third period with a seeing-eye wrister from the blue line that made its way through a pike of bodies before taking a hometown bounce in off the post. At that point, Calgary was simply outworking the Oilers all over the ice, and it wasn’t exactly surprising to see them knot the score up as a result.
  • Zach Hyman restored the lead (3-2) on the power play with a nifty backhand goal after Ryan Nugent-Hopkins found him all alone behind the Flames’ coverage. The puck went from Draisaitl to Nuge to Hyman and in the back of the net in a flash, and it was arguably the most impressive play the team pulled off all night long. Make it goals in back-to-back games for Hyman. Floodgates are open.
  • Mattias Janmark picked up his first goal of the year on the empty-netter (4-2) to ice the game and ease the pressure. That last minute of the game was intense, and the relief was real when Janmark hammered the final nail in.
  • Stuart Skinner was back between the pipes for the first time since getting shelled by the Blue Jackets last Monday, and it was vital for him to rebound with a strong effort against the Flames. Win or lose, Skinner had to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem. To his credit, Skinner did exactly that and I’d go so far as to say he was great. Even
  • Make it three assists in the last five games for Vasily Podkolzin, as the kid keeps finding ways to contribute while playing alongside Draisaitl and Arvidsson.
  • Another game, another night where the penalty kill causes pain and suffering. Unfortunately, the penalty kill got tagged again on 1/2 shorthanded situations they faced, further cementing their spot at the bottom of the league’s PK standings.
  • At the other end of the rink, the Oilers’ power play came through when it mattered most. Even though Edmonton’s first two PP attempts were less than idea, it almost doesn’t matter since the third one — the successful one — ended up being the most important of all. In the end, they went 1/3 on the power play and the guys came through in a moment when we needed them most.
  • I love hearing and seeing how many Oilers fans were in the Saddledome last night. It always makes me happy to hear Let’s-Go Oil-ers chants happening in opposing rinks.
  • Is it really even a Battle of Alberta if I don’t tell you that the Oilers only won 46.8% of the faceoffs? I didn’t think so either.

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