The Edmonton Oilers concluded their four-game road trip with a 3-2 overtime loss against the St. Louis Blues on Friday night (March 13), in another game that got away. There are no more “silver linings” in games like these. They needed the two points but came up short, despite a solid effort.
Pius Suter, Cam Fowler, and Robert Thomas scored for St. Louis, while Kasperi Kapanen and Connor McDavid scored for Edmonton. Blues goaltender Joel Hofer was excellent, stopping 36 of 38 shots for a sparkling .947 save percentage (SV%). Meanwhile, Connor Ingram stopped 22 of 25 shots for an .880 SV% in the loss. Here are four takeaways from another disappointing and frustrating defeat.
Oilers Blew Another Lead
No lead is safe with the Oilers. This was the second time this season that they blew a 2-0 lead in St. Louis. They had a 2-0 lead in the second period on Nov. 3 before losing 3-2 in regulation. They were up 2-0 with eight minutes remaining in the third period in this one, and they blew it. They are fighting for the playoffs, so they can’t throw away points like this. The Oilers forget how to play with the lead, and it’s unacceptable. They outplayed the Blues most of the night but still found a way to lose in typical Oilers fashion.
Related: 4 Takeaways From Oilers’ 7-2 Loss to Stars
Head coach Kris Knoblauch deserves plenty of blame for this loss. His systems don’t work with this team. Edmonton is good enough to blow teams out on occasion, but they have no killer instinct. The coach stifles their offence, giving the opposition the chance to hang around all game. The Blues kept it close and finally found their offence.
Sitting back and defending a lead isn’t effective in today’s NHL. You need to keep the pressure applied and continue to add to the lead. That was evident the night before. The Dallas Stars kept the pedal to the floor against Edmonton and blew them out of the water. When the Oilers play poorly, they get blown out, but when they play well, it’s still a one-goal game. The Oilers don’t capitalize on their opportunities nearly as much, and that’s a problem. They deserved a better fate in this one, but they didn’t earn it.
Oilers Were Much Better Defensively
The Oilers were much better defensively than they were against the Stars on Thursday (March 12). They got dismantled 7-2 and were flat from the get-go. So, this was a better effort, but that’s not saying much.
They didn’t allow much in the first two periods. St. Louis went over 20 minutes of game action without a shot and only had two in the first 16 minutes of the second period. The Oilers limited the Blues to nine high-danger chances and only seven at 5-on-5. Six of the nine high-danger chances came in the third period. The first two periods were low-event, thanks to some stingy defence, but they weren’t able to sustain it.
While they played well defensively, they also got some big saves from Ingram. That wasn’t the case the night before. You need your goalie to bail you out occasionally, and Ingram did that. The Oilers had some miscues on the power play, resulting in two breakaways, which the netminder stopped.
Oilers Shuffled the Deck
Knoblauch was forced to change the lines due to the absence of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Nugent-Hopkins flew back to Edmonton for a personal matter and was unavailable for this game. In a subsequent move, the Oilers recalled Max Jones from the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League (AHL), slotting him on the fourth line.
As a result, Matt Savoie got promoted to the top line, which was well deserved. He had another great game. The 22-year-old forward is a smart player and makes great reads. While he’s not flashy, he makes high-percentage plays. He found McDavid with speed through the neutral zone multiple times, eventually leading to a primary assist on McDavid’s goal. The youngster has found his game at the NHL level, and he’s developing right before our eyes.
Oilers’ Bottom Six Played Well
The bottom six had an effective game. They made simple plays, cycled the puck effectively, and generated sustained offensive zone time. The fourth line also drew a penalty in the second period because of their tenacity in the offensive zone.
A big part of that fourth line was Trent Frederic. Frederic was engaged in his 9:16 of ice time. He had two shots and four hits but was also verbally engaged. He was chirping the Blues’ bench, and that’s when he’s at his best. The Oilers need him to be a pest, so hopefully, he continues to get under the opponents’ skin.
The third line of Josh Samanski, Jack Roslovic, and Jason Dickinson was also noticeable. Dickinson has been incredibly valuable on the penalty kill. He’s great with his stick and broke up a pass, which eventually led to a clear during Edmonton’s only shorthanded opportunity. He’s a smart player and has given the bottom six energy. The Oilers must lean on their depth moving forward, especially if they play well.
The Oilers look to get back in the win column when they begin a four-game homestand on Sunday (March 15) against the Nashville Predators. Keep following The Hockey Writers for all your NHL content throughout the season.
