In their first and only trip to Utah this season, the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Utah Hockey Club 4-3 in overtime on Friday night (Nov. 29). Edmonton was down 2-0 after the first period before storming back with three unanswered goals in the middle frame. Utah tied the game at three early in the final frame, before Ryan Nugent-Hopkins won the game in extra time. Here are three takeaways from this back-and-forth contest:
Vasily Podkolzin Scores Again
For the first time since his rookie season in 2021-22, Vasily Podkolzin has goals in back-to-back games. He had a 2-on-1 with Darnell Nurse and decided to rip the puck five-hole, past goaltender Karel Vejmelka. The Oilers had a few odd-man rushes in the first period in which they overpassed the puck and didn’t even get a shot on the net. So, it was great to see the Russian winger look off his teammate and shoot the puck with conviction. He’s got a heavy shot, and he needs to use it.
Related: Can the Oilers Expect Vasily Podkolzin to Heat up After 1st Goal?
With every game, you can see Podkolzin’s confidence growing, especially playing on a line with Leon Draisaitl. Even when he wasn’t contributing offensively, head coach Kris Knoblauch continued to keep him elevated on the second line, and he’s finally being rewarded for his efforts. The Oilers looked lifeless, and his goal seemingly sparked the team and provided some much-needed energy.
The 2019 first-round pick has arguably been the most consistent Oiler so far this season. While he’s struggled to score, he does a lot of things right, and it’s finally starting to pay off. He’s been physical, he’s tenacious on the forecheck, he wins puck battles, and he brings the work ethic on a nightly basis. He currently leads the team with 55 hits, which is 21 more than second place. He’s been a great addition to this forward group, and hopefully, his recent offence is a sign of things to come.
Oilers Battle Back
This five-day break did the Oilers no favours. They were sloppy through large stretches, and they turned the puck over way too much, which led to Utah’s first goal. They were also having a hard time breaking up the cycle which led to sustained time in the Oilers’ zone. They were getting dominated early, but battled back.
They were dreadful in the first period, resulting in an early 2-0 deficit. Through the first quarter of the season, when the Oilers fall behind in games, they often mail it in and fail to push back. However, that wasn’t the case in this one, thanks to the power play. For the first time this season, Edmonton had two power-play goals in a game, and it was the difference-maker. It allowed them to get back into the game in which they were heavily outplayed up until that point.
Once they clicked on the man advantage, they started moving their feet which led to sustained offensive zone time, and more shots to the net. After being outshot 22-12 through two periods, they stormed back with a 20-9 shot advantage in the third period and overtime combined. They shook off the rust and started going back to work.
Even when they gave up the tying goal 3:42 into the final period, they stuck with it and didn’t let Utah get the next one. They got some clutch saves, and a massive overtime winner off the stick of Nugent-Hopkins, which is hopefully a turning point for his individual season. It’s encouraging to see them fight from behind and come away with the two points, even though they relinquished the lead in the third period. Through the course of an 82-game season, you need to find ways to win on nights when you don’t play your best, and this was one of those nights.
Calvin Pickard Delivers Quality Start
Your backup goaltender doesn’t need to be spectacular. He just needs to be serviceable, and that’s exactly what Calvin Pickard was in this one. His numbers weren’t flashy, as he allowed three goals on 31 shots for a .903 save percentage (SV%). But, he kept the team in it while they found their legs after a five-day layoff. He battled all night and gave the Oilers a chance to win.
So far this season, the Oilers have lacked the big save, but the journeyman netminder provided that in the third period when the game was tied at three. He made a great pad save on a point-blank, cross-crease one-timer moments after Utah tied the game. These are the timely saves that the Oilers haven’t gotten enough of, and they don’t win this game without them.
While Connor McDavid and Evan Bouchard registered two power-play points each, they were both on the ice for all three goals against. It was a mixed night for both of them. With this win, the team improves to 12-9-2 on the season. It’s a short turnaround for the Oilers, as they continue their three-game road trip on Saturday night (Nov. 30) when they take on Nathan MacKinnon and the Colorado Avalanche on Hockey Night in Canada.
