They did it! The Oilers won a close tight-knit game on the scoreboard AND in the possession metrics. I was impressed with how the Red Wings old boys were giving the Oilers all they had. But I have to know, how much are they paying the posts? This game could’ve been 6-1 instead of only 2-1 had those four shots off the iron gone in.
Jesse Puljujarvi Update
Pulju scored the game-winner in Karpat’s 1-0 win over KooKoo (gotta love that name!), his fifth game in a row with a goal and seventh game in a row with at least one point. NHL teams would be clamoring for his signature if he was a free agent, including Edmonton, yet some Oilers fans are happy to discount his hard work and production because he plays in an “inferior” league…
There was a report out of Finland that Karpat had signed another high-end player that put them over their budget and there was speculation that Puljujarvi was going to be traded soon, possibly to Carolina. I’d be surprised if anything happened soon.
If I read things correctly, Karpat actually has 20 forwards signed but one player is suspended and two others are on the IR. They also sent two more players to play on their junior club. Bringing their total number of forwards to 15, which is quite manageable. Meaning there’s no rush to move Pulju. At some point, Karpat might have to cross that bridge, but I’m not familiar with the rules over there. Maybe they can send a guy to Ference Island, have insurance claim a portion of his salary, and have a spot for Jesse the whole time.
But that said, December 1st is coming fast and if he is going to be traded (or brought back to Edmonton), it’s got to happen between now and that day.
Five games in a row that Puljujarvi has scored goals that would be saved by the old man who sells dried squid in the market downstairs.
Can you believe this guy? #Oilers https://t.co/3yw1B5UrLf
— BLH (Edmonton Oilers Enthusiast} (@BeerLeagueHeroe) October 19, 2019
Gagner Up, Haas Down
Looks like Samwise has been recalled and Gaetan Haas is heading to The Bake. Not sure I agree with the move but obviously the brass in Edmonton are looking to shake some things up. Haas isn’t providing any offense and Gagner has four points in four games for the Condors. My question is, wasn’t Gagner sent down because he couldn’t play in the top-six and he wasn’t a penalty killer? So what’s changed?
Notes
- 37 shots on net for the Oilers! By golly, I was waiting for a game like this. I didn’t expect Jonathan Bernier to perform as well as he did. The Oilers had been averaging under 30 shots a game this season prior.
- Only three of those shots came in the final thirteen minutes.
- I still don’t like the new uniforms. They could’ve done so much better…
- The Oilers’ first PP of the game was magical. I was shocked that Neal rang it off the post. Just the way this unit is moving the puck, it’s like going back in time and watching the great Russian teams of the 70s and 80s.
- One big difference between this year and the past, the Oilers are whipping that puck around like it’s a live grenade.
- Another big difference, there’s buy-in to Coach Tippett’s defensive system. The forwards are coming back to help out and I feel like that’s massive for this team. Why couldn’t one of the greatest defensive coaches of all-time get these boys to buy-in but Tippet can?…
- It’s been a long time since I saw a three-man unit like McDavid, Draisaitl, and Kassian dominate like they are. I watched Lemieux, Jagr, and Francis destroy the NHL for a few years in the 90s… This is pretty close.
- Who would’ve thought that Zack Kassian would be the NHL leader in +/- ever?
- The CNN line is starting to really feel it. That line as a whole cause the Detroit defense some problems all night.
Game Grades
A – Multiple positive plays offensively and defensively leading to excellent scoring chances for and/or limiting scoring chances against.
B – Positively influenced the game with limited minor or major mistakes that didn’t lead to dangerous scoring chances against.
C – Low event night. Noticed on the roster sheet but not so much on the ice.
D – Limited positive influence while multiple errors lead to multiple goals and/or scoring chances.
F – Ate sh*t. Horrid effort.
Josh Archibald – C – Nearly potted a rebound off of Bernier’s pad. At 5×5, had a shot share of 83%. Talk about tilted ice. A good first period but tailed off after that. Not many shifts after the second period.
Tomas Jurco – B – I liked Jurco’s game. Great job picking off that pass behind the net and walking in front for a scoring chance near the end of the first. He was very hard on the puck and was really working his bag off to make things happen. I wonder if there’s something cooking between him and Haas. They seemed to be able to find each other easily early on. Tough break on Green’s goal for the puck to deflect off of him. He ended the night with one shot on goal and 8:38 of ice-time. I think playing against his old team, he had a bee in his bonnet.
Gaetan Haas – C – He started the game with a bang! Flying into the corner on a forecheck and smoking a Red Wing in the process. The guy knows how to break out of the defensive zone the way that Tippett wants. It’s really nice to watch the center go behind the net and pick up the puck and move it to a winger who’s cutting through the middle with speed. I like Haas’ pace and tenacity but later on in the match, he got smoked in the corner. If he could beef up a bit, he might be a formidable forward in this league. He ended the night with four hits, 60% on the faceoffs and 7:22 in TOI.
Matt Benning – C – Had his work cut out for him when Athanasiou came flying in on him halfway through the first period. Did well to keep the Red Wings speedster to the outside. Playfair is playing the third pairing minimally and sheltered which might actually be maximizing their effectiveness. There were a couple of extended shifts in the third period where his pairing just couldn’t get the puck out.
Kris Russell – C – There was no way he was catching Athanasiou on that alley-oop pass late in the first, but I don’t know if his tap on the hip warranted a penalty. I found that Russell moved the puck well enough, but that’s not really his forte, right? Four blocks on the night is more like it. He did have a couple of really nice soft wristers from the point that found their way to the net mind you.
Patrick Russell – B – THAT close to getting his first career goal! I’m not even talking about the empty net chance. In the first he gathered a pass out of the Oilers’ zone and blazed into the Red Wings end and fired a rocket off the crossbar. He could’ve easily had two on the night but the hockey gods must have different plans for him.
Jujhar Khaira – B – Really great puck protection displayed in this one. Detroit didn’t really have anyone that could match his strength. His puck movement on the night was very tidy. Drew a penalty in the second because the Detroit defender had to resort to an illegal maneuver to try and take the puck off him, even then he still couldn’t and Khaira set up Sheahan for a shot in the slot.
Riley Sheahan – B – 70% on the dot… He’s exactly what the doctor ordered for this team. You’re not going to get a lot of offense from him but that’s not for a lack of effort. He won some important puck battles in the third to relieve some of the pressure Edmonton was under.
Brandon Manning – C – Pretty quiet evening for the Collarbone crusher. I keed! He played a solid game defensively and at one point cleverly shot the puck off the backboards in order for the rebound to come out front. He did find himself in a spot of bother in the third a couple of times trying to get the puck out.
Oscar Klefbom – C – I’ll be honest, I know he makes good plays out there as well as bad, but sometimes they just don’t stand out and you really have to nitpick to get anything. In this game, I didn’t really find him standing out for the positive or the negative, that said, he was dinged with five giveaways. The Cult of Hockey’s Bruce McCurdy said, and I’m paraphrasing, that a giveaway has to be pretty obvious for them to call it and watching the third, I saw at least three times that could be counted as giveaways but I probably wouldn’t have counted them. Basically, Oscar just lost a handle on the puck a few times or he was clearing it out of the Oilers zone.
Alex Chiasson – B – This guy is all business out there. The way he hits and uses his stick like an ax, it’s like he doesn’t give to flying f*cks who he’s going after, if they have the puck, he’s going to do whatever it takes to get it. He had a lovely chance in the first minute of the game when Nuge set up him in the slot for a one-timer and another one around minute eleven where Nuge found him flying down the wing. No go on either though. Three shots, two hits (the one on Bertuzzi was particularly pleasing), a blocked shot, 17+ minutes of TOI, and an assist to his name!
James Neal – B – He was very active early on in the game and drew a penalty on his second shift while driving the net through a myriad of sticks slashing him as he tried to get his shot off. His heavy forecheck is becoming a great asset for this team. Fought off a check from Luke Glendening in the Detroit slot to slid home his 9th of the year.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – B – Good Lord Almighty, Mike Green can pick up his RNH-signed jock the next time these two teams meet. That toe-drag Nuge put on the veteran defender in the second period was a thing of beauty. RNH had some nice looks on the PP but his line had some troubles in the third period when Detroit was pushing.
Ethan Bear – B – What a clever little move on the blue line to fake out the Detroit forechecker and get that wrister on net for goal #2. Did get caught on a poor pinch by one of the fastest players in the league, Dylan Larkin, who flew down the ice for a shot on net. On Green’s goal, the puck slipped under his stick behind the net or else the Oilers might’ve cleared the zone and said goal never would’ve materialized.
Darnell Nurse – B – It was his point shot that James Neal’s rebound goal derived from. He’s really coming into his own this year and although it’s still early days, I’m becoming more and more of a believer in this player. He was really engaged in the offensive zone in this one and as a result, he came away with five shots on net. Do you think it has anything to do with him playing for a contract?
Zack Kassian – B – His textbook screen on Jonathan Bernier was a major factor in Ethan Bear’s goal finding its way into the net. Pasted a couple of Red Wings in the third period on one shift halfway through.
Leon Draisaitl – B – Nearly took the Oilers lead to two after Neal’s goal when he walked into the Red Wings zone and fired one off the far post. He might have as many goals as The Real Steal had all those posts he’s hit this year gone in. Won two major puck battles in the seconds preceding Bear’s goal and also displayed some exquisite skill when he knocked a cross-ice pass out of the air late in the third when the Red Wings had their goalie pulled.
Connor McDavid – B – Boy did he have some wonderful drives in the second period but the puck just wasn’t sitting for him. No better example that on that empty net attempt that rang off the post. The Red Wings managed to keep him off of the scoresheet but he was vintage Connor otherwise. Should’ve drawn a penalty in the third off of Hronek when he crashed the net.
Mikko Koskinen – B – Another solid game! Shocking what happens when you have two competent netminders and you don’t ride one of them until he’s so tired he can’t find the energy to lift his arm. His breakaway stops on Detroit’s speedsters had me cheering so loud that my kids were giving me funny looks. Made some really great stops in the third period to preserve the Oilers’ lead.
The Oilers next game is against the Jets in Winnipeg on Sunday. She’ll be a tough one but not an impossible one. Here’s to hoping the boys can go 8-1-0!!!
