The Edmonton Oilers started their Monday night game against the Pittsburgh Penguins on the right note, actually scoring the first goal. The game quickly changed and the Penguins went up 3-1 early in the second period. The first period was owned by Pittsburgh but the Oilers managed to keep themselves in the game.
The comeback mounted as soon as Connor McDavid went off the ice injured, but he was back in no time to help the Oilers pull even on the season at 3-3 and hand the Penguins their first regulation loss. There were a number of great things done by the Oilers in their sixth game of the season, so let’s get into it.
Small Line Tweak Made All the Difference
McDavid got taken into the Penguins’ goalpost and was down for a short time. This created an Oilers’ power play but McDavid was in the dressing room. He was out about 2.5 minutes before returning, but in that time a power-play goal was scored and lines were tweaked.
The momentum started with a power-play goal followed by a franchise-record 26 shots on goal in the second period. The momentum didn’t die in the third period as the Oilers outshot the Penguins 38-16 in the second and third periods thanks in part to the new lines and instant chemistry.
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The small tweak that was made to the top-six that ended up making all the difference was switching Evander Kane to the second line with Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman. That moved Ryan Nugent-Hopkins up to the top line once again reuniting with McDavid.
The Oilers finally broke through when Kane scored the third goal of the game for the team after 11 consecutive minutes of dominance. He ended the game with nine shots himself. That line produced two goals at five-on-five but remained dominant the rest of the game. As for the top line, even though McDavid and Kailer Yamamoto didn’t record a point, they both played a big part in the pressure and success their line had. Nugent-Hopkins got the five-on-five goal for the Oilers and the win showed just how important the tier of players right behind McDavid and Draisaitl are.
Related: Oilers’ Connor McDavid Can & Will Score 60 Goals This Season
The third line also saw a little change at times throughout the game. The line is regularly Warren Foegele, Ryan McLeod, and Jesse Puljujarvi, but Derek Ryan got some looks there as well. Ryan slotted on that line in place of Puljujarvi who wasn’t handling pucks well and turning it over in the offensive zone. It was noticeably one of McLeod’s best games of the young season, if not the best. But Foegele has also been consistently solid for the Oilers thus far, making the decision of the Oilers to keep him around a good one.
Evan Bouchard Had Game of the Season
It was a great sign to see Evan Bouchard have the game of the season. He may have only contributed one assist offensively, but he did so much more all over the ice. He led the Oilers in SAT (team shot attempts while player is on the ice) by a wide margin. He also logged a lot of minutes, and deservedly so. Even with seven defencemen dressed, it was the most ice time he’s received this season and only the second time he played over 20 minutes in a game.
Throughout the game, Bouchard looked confident in all three zones. He often carried the puck himself out of the defensive zone and was making confident moves and plays with the puck to gain possession in the offensive zone. He was walking the line, getting shots through, and making plays to produce offence (from “Bouch not bombing: Offensive game of Edmonton Oilers d-man kicks into high gear”, Edmonton Journal, Oct. 22, 2022). He was also joining the Oilers’ rush more often and doing what he can to keep the momentum going in the offensive zone.
Bouchard’s vision was good in the game and he showed poise and physicality in the defensive zone. More physical play has become a trend for the young defenceman and it makes him tougher to play against. This performance needs to start becoming a regular occurrence as he is fully capable of putting on a show every night (from “Lowetide: Why Oilers’ Evan Bouchard will be a key to 2022-23 season”, The Athletic, Oct. 10, 2022).
Campbell Continues to Play Better Throughout Games
Despite not having the best numbers so far this season, Jack Campbell has played well for the Oilers. He has consistently gotten better throughout games, giving the Oilers a chance to win even when they get off to slow starts. He has allowed nine goals in the first period this season, four in the second, and two in the third.
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Many of the first period goals I wouldn’t put on Campbell. The Oilers’ defensive structure hasn’t been great this season and it showed again against the Penguins. High-danger chances and odd-man rushes have been a normal occurrence against Campbell, and he has still held the team in games regardless.
The score should have been higher against the Oilers in the first period vs the Penguins if it were not for Campbell’s performance. He made a number of key saves early and completely locked it down with what action he got for the remaining two periods. He has made the big saves at the right times this season, and he’s bound to get better and put complete games together soon.
This win against a strong Penguins team continues a trend of how the Oilers want to play their games. The lines should remain how they are to at least kick off the next game and they should go right back to Campbell as the Oilers look for redemption on Wednesday against the St. Louis Blues.
