When the sun broke on the morning of January 25th in Edmonton, the light shed upon an NHL schedule that many Oilers fans had more than likely once deemed impossible at this time of year. At the top of the Pacific Division standings read: 1) San Jose, 2) Anaheim, and 3) Edmonton. The Oilers, right up there with the big boys from California.
The question on everyone’s mind heading into the late California road trip for the Oilers was, “are these standings legitimate”? Do the Oilers deserve to be up at the top with these teams? Well, there would be no better time to find out than a two game back-to-back road trip with both Anaheim and San Jose. Wins would not be guaranteed, but a broader understanding of this team’s capabilities was a certainity.
With that said, how would the Oilers fare in the first night of their 48 hour challenge against the Anaheim Ducks? Could Edmonton find a way to answer the bell on night one? Let’s take a look and see.
1st Period
- 5 minutes into the game and not a whole lot was going on. Possession tilted slightly in favour of Anaheim, but not a lot of danger either way. Hard to tell if that would be a good or bad thing going forward for the Oilers. Shots were only 2-0 Anaheim.
- A Power Play for the Oilers in the mid-period would prove fruitless and frustrating, not only for the inability to score, but also to produce chances. The Oilers struggled to generate clean zone entries let alone shots on their man advantage opportunity.
- From then on, Cam Talbot would have to be sharp as the Ducks generated more than a couple good to great scoring chances. Bad, bad, bad.
- To highlight this, with 5 minutes to go in the period the Oilers had only generated 2 shots. Not nearly enough.
- A late shift by he McDavid line generated more than a bit of momentum, with a couple scoring chances and a few big hits. This lead to a Power Play that….
- Wouldn’t score, but would generate many more chances than their first man advantage opportunity. Good end to a relatively bad period.
That was not a great period. Especially considering that this a team the Oilers are supposed to be chasing. Only until very late in the period would they appear to have some jump, but before that, there was very little, if anything, generated. The Oilers would need to get their legs moving big time in the 2nd. Hopefully the momentum generated late could carry over.
2nd Period
- Early on, Kris Russell would block a shot and battle through what appeared to be significant pain. Thankfully, the Oilers defenseman would be okay, but for a moment we all held our breathe. He would be a big loss if hurt.
- Draisaitl, you are lovely! Just 5 minutes into the second, Draisaitl and McDavid would take advantage of a brutal turnover by Anaheim to score and put the Oilers up 1-0. The goal was Leon’s 18th of the year, and assist was McDavid’s 57th point. What a duo.
If at first you don't succeed… #EDMvsANA pic.twitter.com/fM605QEIbM
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 26, 2017
- Halfway through the 2nd and the shots were 6-3 in the period for the Oilers, and 12-10 in favour of them in the game. That is a better turnaround after the 1st for Edmonton.
- Talbot was once again sharp shortly after the 10 minute mark, making some key stops. Mr. Talbot…
- And the NUUUGE stays hot! He scores his 11th of the year off of a beautiful forecheck by Slepyshev and a nifty little pass from Lucic. With only 2 minutes left in the 2nd, that was a massive goal. But maybe not as big as…
- Zack Kassian’s beautiful goal just a minute later! Using his speed to capitalize on a great defensive zone entry stop by Letestu, Kassian would chip the puck around a Duck’s defender and score a gorgeous little backhander. 3-0 Oilers!!
ZACK ATTACK! 😱 #EDMvsANA pic.twitter.com/lKyw4DjWjJ
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 26, 2017
Wow, what a period! Much, much, much better than the 1st. The Oilers were able to use the spark late in the 1st to provide momentum for a 2nd period in which they were able to score 3 big goals. A nice 3 goal cushion going into the final frame is just excellent. The last question on the night was, how well could the Oilers hold it against a good Anaheim team…
3rd Period
- And that’s the start you want in the 3rd! A spectacular forecheck leads to Draisaitl’s 19th goal of the year from Maroon and Sekera! That is a 4-0 lead for the Oilers.
That passing tho… #EDMvsANA pic.twitter.com/4Jcj85qXhD
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 26, 2017
- Halfway through the period and the Oilers would successfully kill off an Anaheim Power Play thanks in large part to more of that famous Cam Talbot witchery. He is remarkable.
- Despite giving up a couple of chances in the 3rd, the Oilers did a respectable job holding onto their 4 goal lead in the 3rd, giving up only 9 shots in the 3rd. The Oilers would walk their way to a rather loud victory in Anaheim..
Final Score: Oilers 4 – Ducks 0
If the Oilers were looking to make a statement on their California trip, tonight was a loud one. I am sure that most of us fans were hoping for the Oilers to just show up in a competitive nature against a very good Ducks team. Instead we got a game that maybe wasn’t as dominant as the scoreboard suggested but was very impressive none the less.
The Oilers started slow (what’s new) but took it to the Ducks in the 2nd, and didn’t let up in the 3rd. It wasn’t quite a complete game, but it showed the Oilers maturity. they have consistently found a way to bounce back from bad shifts, bad periods, and bad games and generate plenty of good hockey as a result. It is extremely refreshing to see.
The Oilers hold a lot of their success tonight to the excellent work of Cam Talbot. No, Talbot didn’t steal the game for the Oilers, but he did make key stops when he needed to in order to build on Edmonton’s momentum and deny any chance of Anaheim getting any. He was huge.
Up front, the Oilers had solid play from all 4 lines again. Over the last couple elf games this has started to appear, and or the Oilers chance at the playoffs, it will be important for it to continue. McLellan’s ability to roll out any line at any time will be key down the stretch to ensure the big guys can stay fresh and effective in proper match ups. Keep up the good work Slepyshev, Caggiula, Lucic, Kassian, Hendricks and Letestu.
On the backend, the defence wash’t perfect, as was noticeable from the chances generated by Anaheim, but they did their job down the stretch to their job to limit the damage. Russell was noticeable with his warrior mentality tonight, battling through being hurt, and still being effective. Impressive showing.
These were a massive 2 points for the Oilers and anything tomorrow night in San Jose will now just be a cherry on the top of this pie. There was a time when the Oilers could not at all be counted on to win a game like tonight’s tilt. 2017 is a different year and the expectations have been changed. What a fun ride.
Players of the Game
- Cam Talbot: 26 saves on the night and his 4th shutout of the night. Huge night for the goaltender.
- Leon Draisaitl: 2 goals on the night and he regains the team lead in goals. He is vital to this team’s success.
- Zack Kassian: He nabbed a beautiful goal (seriously beautiful) and was hustling all night. Impactful night for the big winger.
Up Next: Tomorrow Night in San Jose
Tomorrow night the Oilers will look to make it 3 in a row against the Sharks. They struggled just a couple weeks ago against San Jose but will be aiming for redemption fresh off the heels of this big win. Will Talbot start in net? My gut says yes. Tomorrow night, 8:30 p.m., it will be electric.
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