The Edmonton Oilers got the win on Thursday, but at what cost? On Thursday evening, the Oilers played their second of four games on this road trip through the American part of the Pacific Division, facing off against the bottom-feeding San Jose Sharks. Edmonton picked up a 3-2 win, but Leon Draisaitl left the game with an apparent injury. Let’s take a look at all of that and more.
The Oilers opened the scoring just over six minutes into the first period. Connor Brown used his speed to get behind the defence, move the puck to his forehand, and roofed it past goaltender Georgi Romanov. Very Connor McDavid-esque goal.
Unfortunately, the Sharks managed to tie it about two minutes later, as defenceman Jack Thompson one-timed a shot past Calvin Pickard. The game stood at 1-1 heading into the second period.
About three minutes into the second period on an Oilers power play, Leon Draisaitl elected not to shoot, instead finding Viktor Arvidsson in the slot for his third goal in as many games. Don’t let him get hot.
Once again, the Sharks found an answer about nine minutes into the second period, as the Sharks forced a turnover and had a 3-on-2. The puck found its way to Tyler Toffoli, who made no mistake in scoring his 28th of the season.
With about five minutes left in the period, the Oilers won a faceoff in the offensive zone. Good things happen when you throw it on the net, and that’s just what Evan Bouchard did, as Jeff Skinner tipped it past the Sharks’ netminder for the 3-2 lead.
Takeaways…
Is this team cursed? After taking a plethora of tumbles, Leon Draisaitl became doubtful for the game and never returned. As you may recall, he missed a handful of games a few weeks ago. Also on the shelf are Connor McDavid, Stuart Skinner, Mattias Ekholm, Trent Frederic, and Evander Kane. They need to be healthy come playoff time.
The good news is Viktor Arvidsson looks to be finding his game as he has three goals in as many games. Over his past 13 games, the Swedish forward has six goals. Jeff Skinner scored his 15th goal of the season as well. All that matters is how they perform in the playoffs.
Speaking of Skinner, the line of him, Mattias Janmark, and Connor Brown has found some chemistry, with two players on that line scoring a goal in the game. Janmark picked up his 16th assist of the season. I’m not sure if that line will stick together when everyone returns, but it’s nice to have that sort of depth.
Calvin Pickard deserves to start games when Stuart Skinner returns. On Thursday, he saved 27 of 29 shots for a .931 save percentage. More importantly, he made a massive save when the Sharks pulled their netminder to keep the game 3-2.
Up next is one of the most important games of the season, as the Oilers head to Los Angeles to face the Kings on Saturday at 2:00 PM MT. As of right now, the Oilers sit in third place in the Pacific Division with a 44-26-5 record with 93 points, while the Kings have a 43-23-9 record. Even if the Oilers win that game, the two teams have an even number of games played, and the Kings have the next tie breaker, regulation wins (38 to 32). It’s also worth noting that the Oilers are just five points back of the Vegas Golden Knights for the top spot in the division.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. They can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
