I’ll just start off by saying two words. Jesse Puljujarvi!!!
What an absolute beauty he is! He’s got a good record of games against Winnipeg. Who knows why he plays as well as he does when the Oilers meet the Jets, but it is what it is and I hope the coaching staff and Edmonton’s stars take notice of this and work with Pulju here.
Bloody kid could’ve had a hat-trick!
Now on to the not so nice stuff…
If the Oilers don’t find a way to bring some more intensity and finish to the game, they’ll be joining their cross-provincial rivals on the golf course sooner than later. It’s fine and dandy to pepper the opposition netminder but if none of those shots are dangerous or make that netminder have to do an ounce of work outside his comfort zone, what’s the point?
Now, some of you might be saying that I’m being harsh on the Oilers and that the Jets got lucky or they simply ran into a hot goalie. Hogwash! The Jets took away most of Connor and Leon’s time and space, they removed the middle of the ice and forced Edmonton to play from the outside. Where was the response? Where were the adjustments from the coaching staff aside from simply throwing Leon and Connor back together?
Now, if the Oilers are content with taking their chances from the perimeter with distance shots and crowding the net front, great! But they’ve got two players that’ll do that effectively, Alex Chiasson and Jesse Puljujarvi.
I don’t think they’re fine with that game plan though.
You see, the standard of officiating has changed but it seems to me that the Oilers were expecting that same old regular season reffing because they did nothing to push the envelope themselves on Wednesday. A few big hits here and there but I feel like Winnipeg really figured out how to walk that line perfectly plus they were the aggressors from the outset and they did what was required to build up momentum for their team. Given that they’re a team whose play stems from how much emotion they’ve manufactured, a good portion of that game they controlled.
Connor Hellebuyck is good and that was one of the things I warned about in my series preview. Just like Corey Crawford last year, it’s completely possible that the Oilers could get undone by stellar netminding again… It really all comes down to who’s more willing to sacrifice everything to get the job done and right now, it appears that Mark Scheifele’s boys are making that proclamation loud and clear.
The other thing that Winnipeg had going in game one, depth effectiveness. With Andrew Copp in the lineup, it allowed Paul Maurice to get that wicked 3rd line with Adam Lowry, Mathieu Perreault, and Mason Appleton going.
So, you’ve got to ask yourself, when Dave Tippett stacks his top line, does that make it easier for the Jets? All they have to do is shut down that 97’s line and theoretically it’s goodnight Irene, no? Yamamoto hasn’t scored in over 25 games and RNH’s 5×5 scoring has shit the bed this year. That leaves Puljujarvi to become the driver of that second line, which is an idea that I love, but aside from McDavid and a handful of others, I don’t know many forwards who can do this on their own. That said, I believe fully in Pulju’s ability and there’s a chance that this series could be his coming out party.
You know who could’ve helped Edmonton last night, the best faceoff man in the NHL, Luke Glendening. The Oilers as a whole were 39% on the dot and that simply cannot continue if they’re to have success in the next week or so. Too bad Ken Holland could strike a deal to bring in a good faceoff man at the deadline.
Okay! That’s it. Ramble complete.
So we now know what the Oilers need to improve upon for game two, right? There’s a chance the Jets could have Nik Ehlers and/or PL Dubois in the lineup too, so Edmonton really has to put the pedal to the metal and show some f*cking desperation.
- Faceoffs
- Depth effectiveness
- Net front presence
- Finishing
If those four things improve, I believe the Oilers will win game two with ease.
Should they be in the lineup, here are three players that I think you should keep an eye on for the Jets tonight,
- #26 Blake Wheeler – He played well on Wednesday. Looked much better than his regular season form and that’s exactly what you want from your captain.
- #17 Adam Lowry – Did his job to perfection in game one and now it appears that he’ll be tasked with either containing both McDavid and Draisaitl OR RNH and Puljujarvi.
- #44 Josh Morrisey – He was very solid in the previous game. Bent but didn’t break. Winnipeg needs this from their no.1 defenseman. If he falters, there’s a chance the Jets defense heads down with him.
With regards to Edmonton, I’ll be watching these three individuals closely,
- #13 Jesse Puljujarvi – Diamonds are formed under intense pressure… Are we witnessing the emergence of the next great Finnish winger? Bob Stauffer compared him to Zach Hyman on Oilers Now yesterday… I think he’ll be much better. How much better? Let’s see how he does when he’s the offensive focal point of his line.
- #21 Dominik Kahun – During yesterday’s practice he was taking rushes with Draisaitl and McDavid. If that line is to be deployed this evening, Kahun is going to play an important role on that line. He has to be the guy that Winnipeg forgets about as they focus all their attention on his linemates. He has to be that guy who is right there in the net-front muck sweeping in those rebounds and tipping shots or else, what’s he there for? There are other players who can forecheck better than him, that can be more physical, and are better at playing around the blue paint…
- #44 Zack Kassian – I don’t expect Kass to be in-form right off the bat here. He laid some nice hits in the first game of the series and was physically involved during his time on the ice. So, I’d like to see a continuation of that with an uptick in TOI tonight. This is a player that can spike the emotional intensity for Edmonton and from Wednesday’s results, they are absolutely desperate for some of that.
Oilers Notes
Mike Smith and Ethan Bear weren’t present at practise yesterday. I haven’t the foggiest as to if they’ll be out tonight but if they are, I think most would assume Evan Bouchard would step in if Bear cannot. However, I wonder if Coach Tippett would insert Caleb Jones or Kris Russell (Is he healthy enough to go yet?) as they can play both sides. Personally, I think that’d be the wrong thing to do as Bouchard is capable of handling 3rd pair minutes.
As for Smith, if he’s out I don’t know where Mikko Koskinen sits on Dave Tippett’s goaltending depth chart right now. One of Edmonton’s media members noted how sharp 3rd stringer Alex Stalock looked in practice yesterday and that has me contemplating if there’s a chance he gets a shot in net since he’s just as good at handling the puck as Smith is. Has anything stranger happened than putting a guy in between the pipes for his first competitive hockey game in over a calendar year?
Just a note on Kassian again, is there a chance that he gets a shot in the top-six of Yamamoto can’t get his offense going? Killer was dangerous the other night but that scoring drought is getting out of hand and Kassian has experience in the top-six with Connor and Leon…
I talked to a North Division source last night and the sense I got back at the end of that conversation was that the Oilers will be coming out with much more fire in their bellies. The start for them will be way better. My source’s belief was that Edmonton was indifferent and uninterested from the get-go in game one and a change in competitive attitude will be noticeable.
A statement win in game two is crucial.
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