GDB 10.0 Conclusion: Oilers extend winning streak to five games with dominating 7-4 win over Predators

Leon Draisaitl, president and CEO of the Nashville Predators. Final score: 7-4 Oilers

Heading into the second period with a three-goal lead in their pocket, the biggest thing on my Coach Baggedmilk to-do list was for the Oilers to keep the pedal to the ground and leave Nashville no room to come back. . No mercy, no surrender. And since we knew the Preds were going to hit the ice with a chip on their shoulder, finding a way to weather any early storms was task number one. Ready to go in Game 1, the Predators hit the ice with all the pace and urgency we’d come to expect, but couldn’t get any of their first chances to stick, which was the light of the day. day the Oilers needed to start closing the coffin. Although the goals didn’t flow as freely in the second period, the boys were able to cash in one of their multiple power-play chances to extend the lead to four and put the Predators further in the rearview mirror. Even when Johanson scored to put Nashville under three, it never looked like the Oilers had trouble losing control.

Ahead of a field goal with one period to play, the best thing the Oilers could do was continue playing as they had for the first 40 minutes. While it’s certainly not perfect, Edmonton was by far the best hockey team in this game and if they could just stick together a little longer we’d put two more points in the bank and add another ‘W’ to our trail. But as we know all too well, the job isn’t done until the final buzzer sounds and there was no way the Predators would turn around and die. As expected, they started the third period like a house on fire, pushed the pace offensively, and it was hardly surprising to see them fight tooth and nail as they tried to get back into the game. The good news is that the Oilers were able to counter every time the Predators landed something, and the resilience allowed them to meet any challenge thrown at them. Rather than being crunch breakers, the Oilers found a way to beat a struggling team, and to me that’s almost as important a detail as getting the two points. Good teams beat bad teams, and that’s exactly what happened tonight at Rogers Place.

The envelope.

• Shortly after Ekholm’s opener, Evander Kane leveled the game (1-1) with a nice deke after Leon Draisaitl found him alone in the crease with a laser beam from a pass in reverse. Beautifully executed by Kane and Draisaitl. Kane added a second just over three minutes later (2-1) with a one-touch shot from the slot after – guess who – Leon Draisaitl found it with some space and a lane to shoot the washer. Kane completed the hat trick (7-4) with just over a minute and a half to play after McDavid and Draisaitl did a pretty good job setting him up for the shot. Remember when Kane gave McDavid the hat trick on opening night? Favor refunded.
• Just 26 seconds after Kane’s second goal, Connor McDavid extended the lead (3-1) with a quick flick from the circle after Zach Hyman’s pass near center ice gave the captain time, space and an open look at the net that he did not waste. McDavid added a powerplay goal (5-1) midway through the second period after Draisaitl returned the tie to him in the circle and fired a quick shot past Saros.
• Still in the first half of sorts, Derek Ryan notched his first goal of the year (4-1) as the commercial end of a fine passing game that saw Tyson Barrie make a little swing in the slot before to make a perfect backhand pass to put the tap-in.
• Although he already had three points on the night, Leon Draisaitl didn’t have a goal yet, so he corrected that (6-3) with a power-play punch from the slot after Nugent-Hopkins found with a nice pass that former MVP ted off on. If I were the Nashville Predators, I’d just put Leon Draisaitl’s face on their jerseys, which would be a fitting tribute to a man who owns them at every turn. What else can you say about the guy after racking up five points (1G, 4) on the night?
• Markus Niemelainen seems to be getting better and better, right? It’s not that he’s too flashy or anything, but he’s quietly steady and I appreciate that from a guy who’s just learning the ropes. Nemo finished with 13:25 in TOI, four shots on goal, three hits and a block.
• If you’re going to mess with the Oilers’ power play, you’re going to get burned, and that’s exactly what happened to the Predators after the good guys scored them for two out of six man-advantaged chances.
• The Oilers picked up a win from Corskis after outscoring Nashville by a 37-23 margin.
• What’s not to love that the Oilers won 54% of faceoffs? Beautiful.

PRESENTED BY BETWAY

• Mattias Ekholm opened the scoring just 34 seconds after Campbell headed a rebounding shot bouncing straight off his stick. I know I’ve defended Campbell several times over the past week, but that obviously wasn’t the start he wanted to have. That said, there was no one around Ekholm for a country mile so…as she goes.
• Ryan Johanson kept the Predators in the fight with a power-play goal (5-2) that saw the big center park in the slot and put his stick on Josi’s shooting pass, deflecting it perfectly at through Campbell. It’s the exact goal we’ve seen the Sedins score countless times for the Canucks over the years.
• Philip Forsberg cut the lead to two goals (5-3) with a time bomb that Campbell got a piece of but just couldn’t reach. Frankly, I give credit to Forsberg on this one because I don’t know what else the keeper could have done there.
• Nino Niederreiter brought Nashville to within a pair (6-4) with a second power-play goal that looked incredibly similar to the one Johanson scored in the second. Same pass from Josi, same deflection from the lunge that beat Campbell to the floor.
• While it was great to see the Oilers’ PK shut out the Flames on Saturday, they allowed goals again tonight against the Predators. The Oily Boys allowed goals in both shorthanded situations they faced. Not good.
• I’m not one of those people who thinks the Oilers need jerks on their roster, but I admit it would be nice to have more sandpaper on the roster for games like these. Just me?
• If you care about hits, Nashville threw a lot — 60-27 according to the NHL — but that also meant they didn’t have much of the puck.
• I’m not going to lie, when Jack Campbell allowed a goal just 34 seconds into the game I was worried about a few clips from today’s episode of Oilersnation Radio aging like milk in a car hot. Luckily he calmed down a bit as the game progressed but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned about the 3+ goal streak he had until present this season. Then again, Campbell has also won four of his last five starts, so we’re getting the results we want, but it would be absolutely good for all of us if he could lock one down sooner rather than later. Campbell finished the night with 19 saves and an .826 save percentage.
• I liked seeing Jesse Puljujarvi mix things up late in the game, but that was about as noticeable as he was against the Predators. I really like Jesse and think he can be part of the solution, but I also think he has more to offer than what we’re getting right now.
• Before anyone suggests that I separate Puljujarvi, I also think Kailer Yamamoto needs to find a way to finish some of his opportunities if he wants to stay with Draisaitl and Kane. I know he contributes to the hustle and the takeaway – I really like those two things – but he also has to participate in an offense once in a while.