Ban matinees. Final Score: 6-5 Blue Jackets
Welcome to our Oilers game day content presented by NHL odds site Betway!
When I wrote the GDB this morning, I felt incredibly confident that the Oilers were going to be able to win this game provided that they gave us the same level of effort that we saw on Thursday night in Pittsburgh. When the boys are at their best, they’re nearly impossible to handle and the Penguins took the brunt of that wrecking ball without having much in the way of answers on how to stop it. Play like that again and the Blue Jackets are only a speedbump. But, once again, asking the Oilers to get started on time during the daylight hours proved to be a tall order as it only took 1:14 into the first period before the boys found themselves in a hole. And even though they did improve slightly as the period wore on, I doubt anyone in a white uniform was overly pumped about their performance when they were recapping their start in the dressing room.
Down by a goal but with plenty of time left to go, the Oilers were by no means in a horrible spot but they still had to get their shit together. They needed to crank up the intensity by a factor of 10 and do whatever it took to get the next goal and even up the score. Instead, what we got was another disastrous opening few minutes as the Blue Jackets were able to not only get the next goal but also two more markers for good measure. Before the game was even 26 minutes old, the Oilers were down by four and looked like they didn’t even know they were supposed to be playing hockey at the time. But just when things were looking to be at their worst, a goal by Warren Foegele kicked off what might have been the greatest 8:02 that I’ve ever seen. In a span of just over eight minutes, the Edmonton Oilers managed to completely erase the four-goal deficit and knot the score up at four apiece. What a rollercoaster of emotions. From rage to elation in a McBlink.
As the third period was starting, I was still processing what the hell we had just watched after the Oilers came roaring back from a four-zip deficit to tie the game and silence a home crowd that had been buzzing only minutes earlier. So when the period kicked off with the Oilers picking right back up where they left off, it was hard not to believe that they were going to pull this thing off. Had it not been for Korpisalo, the Oilers would have been up by at least a goal or two. But just as I was writing that last sentence, the Blue Jackets reclaimed their lead on the back of another defensive zone turnover by Edmonton. For all the great things the boys were doing on the ice, they just couldn’t eliminate the self-inflicted wounds that were ending up in their own net. What went from a comeback for the ages ended up in disappointment because that’s usually what happens when you spot the other team with a four-goal lead. As much as it was fun to watch the boys try to battle back, the reality is that losing to the Blue Jackets is endlessly annoying given the importance of the points they just left on the board.
The wrap.

THE BRIGHT SIDE

  • Warren Foegele got the Oilers on the board (4-1) with a low wrister from the circle that found its way underneath Korpisalo’s pad and into the back of the net. Foegele continued his hot run of late that’s seen him score four goals in his last five games.
  • Leon Draisaitl pulled the Oilers back to within a pair (4-2) with a power play goal from his office that saw the former MVP absolutely tattoo his shot past Korpisalo.
  • Connor McDavid cut the lead in half (4-3) with what was arguably one of the prettiest shorthanded goals you will ever see. McDavid picked up the puck in his own zone and basically willed himself through the entire Columbus PP squad before sniping his shot through Korpisalo’s legs. Just ridiculous stuff from the captain. McDavid second goal (4-4) under two minutes later with a clapper from the top of the circle that made its way through a Zach Hyman screen and beat Korpisalo who was looking more rattled by the minute.
  • Zach Hyman narrowed the gap (6-5) with just under three minutes to play after he found a loose puck in the crease and shoveled it over the line. It was a greasy goal by a guy that never shies away from the tough areas. I love him.
  • Tyson Barrie just keeps quietly collecting points and he grabbed two more assists to give him 33 helpers on the year.
  • I’m going to go on record and say that I am in love with the Oilers’ power play. More often than not, Edmonton comes through for us on the power play when we need it and today’s game was another example as the boys cashed in one of their four chances with the man advantage.
  • If you’re a fan of the Corskis then you’ll likely love that the Oilers outshot the Blue Jackets by a 47-26 margin.
  • I can’t even enjoy that the Oilers won 64% of the faceoffs. This is the real tragedy of the morning imo.
  • The Oilers scored four goals in a single period for an NHL-best 10th time this season.

PRESENTED BY BETWAY

THE FACE PALMERS

  • Kirill Marchenko opened the scoring (1-0) with a tap-in from two feet only 1:14 into the first period after a rough turnover by Nurse gave Columbus some free zone time that they converted in short order. Marchenko added another goal early in the second period (3-0) after picking up a pass right in the slot and sniping his shot up and over Jack Campbell.
  • Boone Jenner extended Columbus’ lead with a power play goal (2-0) after he got his stick on Patrik Laine’s wrister from the high slot and deflected it perfectly through the goaltender. Make it the second goal to come in the opening moments of the period.
  • Patrik Laine threw another handful of sand in our eyes with a fourth straight goal (4-0) after his quick snipe beat Campbell and got him hooked from the game.
  • Jack Roslovic restored Blue Jackets’ lead (5-4) after capitalizing on another defensive zone turnover in the Oilers zone that wound up in the back of the net. The Oilers were absolutely dominating the game at this point, so to have them fall back behind on a play like this was endlessly annoying. Roslovic added another goal with five minutes to play (6-4) after taking a pass in stride and ripping his shot past Skinner down low on the glove side.
  • We needed the PK to be perfect but it was not meant to be as the Oilers gave up one goal on four shorthanded situations. On the bright side, McDavid did pick up a shortie so I think we may actually be even here.
  • The NHL site has the Oilers listed with four giveaways and I’m pretty sure all four of them wound up in the back of their own net.
  • I don’t need to pile on Jack Campbell. He knows. Not all four of the goals were his fault, but this certainly wasn’t Soup’s afternoon. Campbell finished the game with eight saves and a .714 save%.
  • Stuart Skinner came into this game under horrible circumstances but did he ever find a way to make lemonade out of all those lemons? Not only was Stu making saves that we all expected him to make, but he was also even kicking out chances that looked like sure goals and giving his team the chance to come back. Unfortunately, we didn’t get that same luck in the third period as Columbus got a pair passed him while his counterpart locked things down. I know his stats are rough and he’d definitely want the second Roslovic goal back, but I’m not hanging this loss on him whatsoever. Stu finished with 10 saves and a .833 save%.
  • Darnell Nurse’s cross-ice pass attempt that led to the first Columbus goal was a tough one. He had better options and would have been better served to take an extra look because he had plenty of time.
  • The Broberg-Bouchard pairing really struggled with their puck choices today. They’re young, it happens.

SCORING SUMMARY

1ST PERIOD
1:14
Blue Jackets
Kirill Marchenko (15)
Assists: Johnny Gaudreau (38), Boone Jenner (16)
0
1
2ND PERIOD
1:33
Blue Jackets
Boone Jenner (18) (Power Play)
Assists: Patrik Laine (20), Jack Roslovic (27)
0
2
3:24
Blue Jackets
Kirill Marchenko (16)
Assists: Johnny Gaudreau (39)
0
3
5:56
Blue Jackets
Patrik Laine (17)
Assists: Adam Boqvist (14), Jack Roslovic (28)
0
4
6:40
Oilers
Warren Foegele (11)
Unassisted
1
4
9:42
Oilers
Leon Draisaitl (36) (Power Play)
Assists: Connor McDavid (64), Tyson Barrie (32)
2
4
12:51
Oilers
Connor McDavid (47) (Shorthanded)
Assists: Brett Kulak (14)
3
4
14:42
Oilers
Connor McDavid (48)
Assists: Brett Kulak (15), Tyson Barrie (33)
4
4
3RD PERIOD
9:01
Blue Jackets
Jack Roslovic (5)
Assists: Patrik Laine (21), Kent Johnson (16)
4
5
14:56
Blue Jackets
Jack Roslovic (6)
Assists: Gavin Bayreuther (6)
4
6
17:04
Oilers
Zach Hyman (28)
Assists: Connor McDavid (65), Darnell Nurse (25)
5
6

#GOODCONTENT

Talk to me, Twitter. Hit me up at @jsbmbaggedmilk and Wanye at @Oilersnation and you could find yourself landing in this very spot. 

THE DAILY FACEOFF TRADE DEADLINE SHOW

Join us on March 3rd for the Daily Faceoff Live: Trade Deadline edition as Frank Seravalli and the panel break down all of the latest rumours, news, and rumblings from around the NHL. The show will be live on YouTubeFacebook, and Twitter from 10 AM – 2 PM MT to keep you up to date on all things trade deadline no matter where you’re watching from.