They don’t ask how, just how many, and for the Edmonton Oilers, they’ll happily walk out of Vegas two points richer as they kicked off a four-game road trip in style.
It came without the top player in hockey, Connor McDavid, their top defenceman, Mattias Ekholm, or their No. 1 netminder in Stuart Skinner, to boot.
And after a first period where they stood on a pair of 8’s, watching Vegas score the opening goal four and a half minutes into the game, the dealer gave the Oilers a natural Blackjack in the second and third.
“It looked like maybe it was a gameplan to put them to sleep, and then take it over in the second period,” said Oilers head coach Kris Knobaluch after the game. “I think the execution wasn’t there. Missed passes, going offside — we’re not able to generate much because we were ending plays.”
All of 19 seconds into that second period, though, things changed, when Jake Walman walked down from the blue line, ripping home his first goal as an Oiler, much to the jubilation of 50 Oilersnation Citizens who trekked down for a #NationVacation.
“It almost felt a bit like a home crowd there when we were going,” said Walman. “They always show out, and we knew it was going to be that kind of playoff intensity. It’s what we’re going to be looking forward to in the future.”
Walman’s had his fair share of moments so far as an Oiler, leading the team in blocked shots with 31 since he arrived and taking 29 of his own, all the while chipping in five assists in 12 games prior to tonight’s marker. It was just a matter of time until he got his first as an Oiler, and it couldn’t have come at a better time.
“I’ve been getting my chances, so it was nice to see that one go in,” he said.
The Oilers kept rolling from there, as after getting outshot 10-4 in the first period, they tilted the ice the other way, outshooting Vegas 11-4 in the second.
Vegas, meanwhile, got themselves in penalty trouble late in the frame, taking back-to-back penalties that gave the Oilers a five-on-three, and a chance for Leon Draisaitl to bury No. 52 on the year, making no mistake on a McDavid-esque pass from Ryan Nugent-Hopkins with just under four minutes to go. Then, Viktor Arvidsson joined the fray, jamming away at a puck under Adin Hill’s pads and tucking it home.
“We come out with a strong start, Leo’s line, and we get a goal, and that just gives us a lot more life and I thought our game was a lot better after that,” said Knobaluch.
For the Oilers to shake off that rusty start was impressive, even moreso considering the players they didn’t have in their lineup.
No McDavid, no Ekholm, no Skinner, no Evander Kane, no Trent Frederic, no problem. Edmonton gutted out a well deserved two points, putting them within seven points of Vegas for top spot in the Pacific Division. Though all signs point to them squaring off with the Los Angeles Kings — again — that win was of the statement variety.
Vegas had gone 23-2-4 on the season when leading after the first period this season, and Edmonton’s ability to hand them regulation loss three just shows how the depth pieces of this team have stood tall for them.
Edmonton’s four-game road trip continues Thursday when they visit the San Jose Sharks, before visits to the Los Angeles Kings Saturday and Anaheim Ducks next Monday.
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.
