Sometimes, an NHL team needs a goalie to steal a game for them. On Thursday night Jonas Gustavsson stole a game from the Edmonton Oilers, not for them. In a game where Edmonton outplayed the Flyers and had a pair of two goal leads, including a 5-3 lead in the third period, the Oilers didn’t get a point tonight.
That’s right, Edmonton lost 6-5 in regulation time in what can only be called a disaster. The Oilers, just like they did in Buffalo on Tuesday night, snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. It might just be the most deflating and disappointing loss of the season, one that simply cannot happen if Edmonton intends to make the playoffs.
What Went Right:
Leon Draisaitl was sensational for the Oilers tonight. The big German opened the scoring in the first period and then added two assists for another three point night. I thought he was Edmonton’s second most dangerous player on this night and easily could have had another point or two if things broke right. Leon is finding his zone right now and it’s a huge positive for the Oilers.
Connor McDavid was his special self tonight, and also played with a real chip on his shoulder. McDavid registered 1-1-2 and scored his first PPG of the season in the process. It was another solid night for the NHL’s leading point producer, and he was the most dangerous Oiler on the ice.
Andrej Sekera (1-1-2) was easily Edmonton’s best defender tonight, while Dillon Simpson had a pretty quiet NHL debut. The rookie was +1 and didn’t make any glaring mistakes to my eye. He came as advertised tonight, playing a pretty consistent and quiet game.
Edmonton’s powerplay was decent, scoring two goals and generating a ton of chances. The road PP has been exceptionally good as of late.
What Went Wrong:
Jonas Gustavsson, if things were based off performance, should be sent to the AHL after this debacle. Seriously, what we saw tonight was an absolute disgrace. Gustavsson was beaten SIX TIMES (!!!!!) on just 31 shots. By my count, four of those goals were of the weak variety and had no business getting into the back of the net.
In the end, the main reason Edmonton lost tonight was Jonas Gustavsson. He was absolutely awful, no other way around it.
Oscar Klefbom, who ended the night -5, was also pretty bad. He got worked over a few times and I thought he completely collapsed in third period. Klefbom has apparently hit a wall and hasn’t been very good in a few weeks to my eye. He did register a goal on this night.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Matt Hendricks led the way forward wise in terms of bad nights. RNH didn’t do much of anything offensively and was a total liability defensively. He simply has not been playing good enough as of late, and eventually he’s gonna need some bounces to go his way. Hendricks took a bad penalty, was slow, and was ineffective once again tonight. He doesn’t belong in the lineup.
Todd McLellan:
One issue that is worrying me right now is the in-game adjustments by Todd McLellan. I think the Oiler bench boss is a strong veteran coach, but I also feel like he’s leaving points on the table right now. It was quite clear when Philadelphia scored three goals in 72 seconds that Jonas Gustavsson wasn’t up to the task tonight.
I understand you play in Minnesota tomorrow, but this was a winnable game and McLellan stuck with a player that, quite frankly, proved to be completely incapable of doing his job. Yes, Gustavsson was atrocious, but McLellan had a chance to pull him and let Talbot settle this game down. He didn’t do that.
He let Matt Hendricks and Kris Russell try and defend a lead in Buffalo on Tuesday and it resulted in a loss because neither of them could complete their assignments.
Those are just two examples of poor in-game decisions that have cost Edmonton. I feel like the coach had a chance to set the ship right tonight and he failed to do that. That’s disappointing to me, and it’s digging Edmonton’s hole even deeper.
Final Thoughts:
That sucked. Seriously, there’s no other way to sum that up. This is the second straight game Edmonton managed to lose while leading in the third period. Playoff teams, folks, do not do that. The Oilers left three points on the table and that is bound to bite them in the backside in this very tight Western Conference race. The margin for error is very thin, yet Edmonton keeps making key mistakes.
This one falls on the shoulders of a few people, most notably Jonas Gustavsson, Todd McLellan, Oscar Klefbom and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
The Oilers better hope they are better tomorrow night, because if not they are in some trouble. Losing four in a row at this stage is not acceptable at all.
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