Edmonton Oilers Pregame Thoughts

Thursday night’s game wasn’t how you usually want to win or how you draw up winning; it was the most random way to win.

I often leave the topic of officiating alone in my articles, because every fanbase, from time to time, says that referees are always against the teams they cheer for. We may not reach 100% homerism, but we are sometimes even a tad biased just by nature. Last night, however, I couldn’t be biased about this. The Edmonton Oilers blew a two-goal lead against the visiting Montreal Canadiens, then Montreal took a two-goal lead themselves early in the third period. The Oilers got a power play halfway through the third period, they scored on it, then Josh Anderson got an Unsportsmanlike penalty that put our team back on the power play, and the game was suddenly tied. What happened was Anderson shot the puck down the length of the ice after it went in the net for the first PP goal. I don’t know if he said anything to an official after that. They didn’t really show much of it on the broadcast I watched the game on, and the highlight packages on YouTube don’t make much light of it. Anderson shouldn’t have skated anywhere near the penalty box, just because he was frustrated about a goal against, or possibly about something before the goal against. How many times have we seen other players break their sticks when empty net goals were scored? How often do we catch a hot mic or a camera angle where we can read swear words out of their lips? Not that you should go completely berserk all the time, but Hockey is an emotional sport. I don’t want a league that forces athletes to act like robots.

Edmonton got a late winning goal with just a little over a minute left in regulation. At the very least, The game should’ve gone to Overtime. The total minor penalties taken were already lopsided in favour of our team, but Anderson’s penalty was the absolute worst call. It’s the sort of officiating error that completely changes a game and switches momentum to the other side of the rink, as we saw perfect evidence of. Mistakes happen, nobody’s perfect. That’s why the NHL, at some point, should make referees do post-game interviews. Discussing this in October and November is one thing. Discussing it in April, May, and June causes insomnia. We don’t want to ask these questions every season. The Oilers will have a loss like that sometime this season, and we’ll cry the same river.

Congrats to David Tomasek on his scoring his first NHL goal. He had great chances in the first couple of games in the season. It’s nice to see him finally get rewarded. Vasily Podkolzin scored his first of the season as well, his first since the passing of his father during the preseason. An emotional moment, and we’re happy for him. Robert Clark, the anthem singer at Rogers Place, was recently diagnosed with hairy cell leukemia. He still came out to sing the national anthem, through this tough time. Oil Country loves him; you love to see it. The Oilers are the road again for three nights. Hopefully, this road trip will be better than the last one. The keys to the game are…

Oilers Pregame Thoughts

Chemistry: After Thursday night’s win, Kris Knoblauch said that he’ll roll the same lines from the third period against the Habs for tonight’s game. Knowing that Isaac Howard will be on the top line may be slightly earlier than expected, but we’ve wanted top six minutes for him. The other lines work as well. Leave them alone and let them get familiar with each other, even if you don’t win this game.

PP Resurgence?: Their power play may never be like it was in 2023, but it’s now scored in four of it’s last eight attempts after a slow start, and no shorthanded breakaway goals against this time. The Kraken come into tonight ranked 25th on the penalty kill. Without imitating Thursday night, draw as many penalties as you can, and use these opponents as a way to keep confidence on the man advantage high.

May The Schwartz Be With You: Have you seen Spaceballs? It’s a pretty funny movie. Jaden Schwartz has been Seattle’s leading scorer to start the season with 8 points in their first 8 games, while playing on their third line.