Oilers snag win that means a little more

All wins don’t come equal.

Some you have to fight a little bit harder for, and some just mean a little bit more.

For the Edmonton Oilers, all of the above were relevant in their 4-0 drubbing of the Seattle Kraken, as they won in every which way. They dominated on the scoreboard, putting up four goals, they dominated on the power play, scoring on both opportunities, and they dominated on the penalty kill, negating all six of the Kraken’s chances which included a minute and a half of five-on-three time at the end of the first.

“We had a fighting mentality,” said Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner, who posted a 26-save shutout — the ninth of his career — as rumours of a trade involving him swirl.

And when things got physical, the Oilers didn’t shy away. Kraken winger Mason Marchment laid a late blindside hit on Darnell Nurse in the second period that drew a crowed, and while Marchment refused to take care of his own business then — or near the end of the game, when Nurse approached him for a fight, only for Marchment to hide behind a linesman — other players weren’t so shy.

Connor Clattenburg laid a thunderous hit in the offensive zone in the third period, getting up and dropping the gloves with Freddy Gaudreau, while minutes later, Alec Regula — who tried to find a dance partner earlier in the game — squared up with Tye Kartye.

“It started with one hit that should have been called,” said Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who had a goal and an assist on the two power play goals in his return to the lineup. “We’re going to stand up for each other and make sure that they know when something like that happens, it’s not just going to go away.”

It was a much-needed win for the team coming off last Tuesday’s loss to the Dallas Stars, as the team got embarrassed on the national stage in the only NHL game of the night. The kind of win that takes the sour taste out of your mouth.

While it may not quiet down all the rumours surrounding this team, Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch applauded his team’s work.

“The special teams were outstanding tonight,” said Knoblauch. “We had a lot of kills, especially early in the game, and just (made) a lot of good reads.

“I thought everyone was on their toes. Any loose pucks, they were attacking, and there were some chances…  and Stu made some big saves.”

Edmonton’s ability to catch their breath continues after their heavily condensed start to the season with no games until Tuesday, when the red hot Minnesota Wild come to town. It’ll kick off a stretch of 12 games in 21 day stretch leading into the Christmas break.

It includes a five-game homestand to kick things off, with the Kraken, Winnipeg Jets, Buffalo Sabres and Detroit Red Wings coming to town after the Wild do, before Edmonton jetsets for a five-game road trip. That will take them to visit the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins and the Wild, before returning home to take on the Vegas Golden Knights on Dec. 21. and the Calgary Flames on Dec. 23.