This is your TL/DR (too long, didn’t read) summary post where excerpts are taken from the best of the best when it comes to Edmonton Oilers blogs. BLH gives you his two cents on the latest posts being published in the Oilogosphere! Including those from Lowetide.ca, The Athletic, Oilersnation, The Cult of Hockey, Copper N Blue, Oil on Whyte, and more!
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The Athletic
The Oilers finally have an effective third line — so how should they deploy it?
- Tippett is not a disciple of line matching, and because of that, Edmonton’s matchups are usually driven by the visiting coach.
- In each of the three games so far this season, the third line has faced the kind of opposition you would expect during the “power vs. power” era in which we currently reside: third-line players from the other side and bottom pairings.
- On Tuesday night, the trio played more because there was plenty of chaos elsewhere. That’s exactly what Tippett needed, a veteran group that could compete and take the pressure off. In two of three games this year, someone from the third line has scored a goal.
- Tippett’s third line will outscore opponents, spend time on the penalty kill, avoid penalties and could be scrapped for parts at any time.
- The line is even in goals after three games, with Kassian and Ryan both scoring five-on-five goals and Foegele grabbing a pair of assists. That’s outstanding for any third line, and for the Oilers, it’s a gift that hasn’t been seen for years.
BLH’s Thoughts: There was a lot of hype going into this season regarding Warren Foegele and Derek Ryan from the local media (mostly Lowetide on McLovin and Stauffer on The U of A kid), but with that came some skeptical optimism as the success of the line was tied to which Zack Kassian would show up to play. If they can continue this form, it will be a gift that the fanbase hasn’t seen since their last great run to the Stanley Cup Final.
Look, I’m has happy as a pig in shit that this line is getting a quick start off the blocks, but until we’re into mid-November, we MUST keep our expectations in check and hope it continues past the ten-game mark. The reason I say that is because even though this team is 3-0-0 to start the year and they’ve got a really favorable schedule for the next month or so, there are little cracks in the foundation that need to be taken care of before the games start to pile on.
The Hockey Writers
6 Takeaways From Oilers’ See-Saw Win Over Young Ducks
Evan Bouchard’s Elevation Pays Off
- Already in the third game of the season we saw Bouchard move up to the top defensive pairing with Darnell Nurse while Barrie sat on the bench… The trust Tippett must have in young Bouchard is showing very clearly, as he was out there in the final minutes protecting the lead with the Ducks’ net empty.
Kassian Leads the Oilers’ Third Line Charge
- Though everyone on this line played well, Kassian was the standout, scoring two goals, one being on the power play. Those were his first two goals of the season in his third game. All of last season saw him score the same amount in 27 games.
Smith Considered Day-To-Day
- A Mike Smith injury is the last thing the Oilers need after the great start to the season he was having. He stopped 82 of 86 shots faced in his first two games of the season before allowing four goals on 15 shots in the first half of this game.
Oilers’ Top Line Adds Even More Offence
- Tippett seems to have made the right call in having Leon Draisaitl play on the top line with Connor McDavid and Jesse Puljujarvi rather than centre his own line. Draisaitl recorded two goals and two assists against the Ducks with McDavid scoring a goal and two assists and Puljujarvi adding two assists.
Oilers’ Power Play Can’t Be Contained
- The power play was on full display once again, going two for six… The top unit wasn’t hogging all the goals this game, as the second power-play unit, which hardly ever sees time, took advantage of the end of one of the Oilers’ many man advantages.
Puljujarvi Drawing Penalties
- I think the Oilers have found another player they can rely on to draw penalties and put the No. 1 power play to work more often… In this game, he drew two penalties on the same play to put the Oilers up by two men — they scored not long after.
BLH’s Thoughts: How long until we start to hone in on the 2nd line and the lack of offense coming from it and how will the Edmonton media frame that? Will they say it’s now a “shutdown line” or will they start to question Dave Tippett’s coaching decisions a bit more during the post-game media avails?
I think those are all very valid observations. I’d add Yamamoto’s and Barrie’s demotions as takeaways too. Early season struggles are strangers to no NHL club in any seasons as they all have at least one person who takes a bit longer to get into form.
The Anaheim game was a fun one to watch, but now we’ve got the Coyotes and the Golden Knights.
So I’m not going to do anymore previews I think. They just don’t get the views, they never have. So I’ll probably just toss in my “Three players to watch” in this section of future gameday posts.
ARIZONA
It’s hard not to have Phil Kessel in this group considering he’s leading the team in scoring from the third line with 8pts, but he’s too obvious to suggest, in my opinion.
- #70 Karel Kejmelka – If you’re asking yourself who this guy is, you’re not alone. I have no bloody clue either, but in two games this year he has a .856 SV% and a GAA of 1.35…
- #6 Jakob Chychrun – This fella is going to be one of Darnell Nurse’s direct rivals for a spot on Team Canada’s 2022 Olympic team. He’s an elite skater and the man can score a goal.
- #67 Lawson Crouse – Stauffer’s been talking this guy up all week and for a guy who’s spent most of his career in the bottom-six, he must’ve had a helluva training camp because he’s on the first line with Nick Schmaltz and Clayton Keller.
Edmonton
- #19 Mikko Koskinen – Came on in relief for Mike Smith in the last game and looked fantastic! We’ll be watching to see if he can keep up that preseason form!
- #56 Kailer Yamamoto – At the time of writing, the Oilers lineup hasn’t been released, so there’s no word on if Killer will be with the 2nd line or the 4th. Either way, he MUST find a way to get his name on the scoresheet with a goal or an assist.
- #22 Tyson Barrie – Last year’s highest scoring defenseman is without a point so far, despite firing 14 shots on net (team high for dmen).
I hope the Oilers take this game more seriously than they did the Anaheim one… They need to win this game decisively.
Spector’s Hockey
- TSN: Chris Johnston reports the San Jose Sharks cannot terminate Evander Kane’s contract due to his 21-game suspension for using a fake COVID-19 vaccination card.
- TSN: Pierre LeBrun noted the void Travis Hamonic’s absence leaves on the Vancouver Canucks blueline. The 31-year-old defenseman is currently on what the club is calling a temporary leave of absence for personal reasons. They currently intend to stick with the rearguards they have while remaining hopeful Hamonic will return at some point this season.
- Elliotte Friedman cites Al Morganti stirring things up last week by suggesting Philadelphia Flyers captain Claude Giroux would be happy to play for the Ottawa Senators. There were rumors about the two clubs talking this summer but Friedman looked into it and got multiple denials.
- New York Rangers coach Gerard Gallant personally called winger Vitali Kravtsov hoping to convince him to return. The young winger is back in Russia but several teams say they’ve been told he wants to play somewhere in the NHL where he’ll get a fresh start.
- The Ottawa Senators will ask real value for Erik Brannstrom from teams calling about him.
