Hereâ€s the thing about blowing as many leads as the Edmonton Oilers have. A record-setting amount of them, as it turns out.
The bright side is, the Calgary Flames arenâ€t blowing a ton of leads these days. Same goes for St. Louis and San Jose, if you get what we mean.
But as the Oilers set a team record with yet another multi-goal lead blown — this time a pair of two-goal leads in a 4-3 shootout loss at Dallas — you do begin to wonder what all that experience from all of those hard-fought playoff games over the past five years is really worth.
“We’re in a good spot there (up 3-1 in the third period), and we let them come at us a little bit too much,†said longest-serving Oiler Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. “Just decisions that end up biting us. We know we’re capable of closing games out like this, but weâ€ve got to start showing it.â€
Just one night after the Oilers had coughed up a 2-0 lead only to lose 3-2 in regulation at St. Louis, Connor McDavid restored Edmontonâ€s two-goal lead when he finished a lovely three-way passing play at 7:51 of the third period. Twelve minutes to protect a two-goal lead — that simply has to be doable for a team thatâ€s played more playoff games in the past five years than any other Western Conference team.
“Decision making is one thing,†said Nugent-Hopkins. “Reading the situation and sometimes taking the cautionary route, but at the same time, we want to still play. Push them back and (not let Dallas) play with the puck too much. Then they start feeling good, they start to feel comfortable and thatâ€s when things happen.
“(There are) too many of these right now. Itâ€s something that we need to fix.â€
This is the first time in history that the Oilers have lost four games when leading by multiple goals within the first 15 games of a season. The loss to the Stars marked the sixth time the Oilers have given up a lead of two goals or more already this season.
They outshot Dallas 12-5 in the third period — in the second game of a back-to-back on the road — yet still, the Oilers were outscored 2-1 in the final frame.
“Yeah, itâ€s difficult to handle that,†head coach Kris Knoblauch said. “In the third period, we gave up three (scoring) chances. You would think that would be on the goalie, that you give up two goals on three chances, but that’s not what I’m saying.
“Itâ€s just the type of chances where we lose focus, lose responsibilities, and let them into a position to make a good play.â€
Leon Draisaitlâ€s line was on the ice for the 3-2 goal, and McDavidâ€s line was on the ice for the 3-3 goal. In St. Louis, it was No. 1 defenceman Evan Bouchard who snoozed on the game-winner by the Blues.
As the old line goes, your best players have to be your best players if youâ€re going to win games.
“It’s one thing if the opposition is making good plays and beating your coverage,†Knoblauch lamented. “But we’re just making mistakes where we’re giving them opportunities.
“Weâ€ve got to make big plays at critical times, not make the mistakes at critical times. Whether that’s been taking a penalty when we’ve had leads, or just puck turnovers, there are lots areas in the game that we need to work on and get better at. It’s just not just one thing.â€
One area of the Oilers’ game that is impeccable these days is the power play.
It entered the game ranked No. 1 in the NHL at 35.1 per cent, and proceeded to go one-for-three against the Stars. Draisaitl scored an incredible goal, one-timing a puck from somewhere south of his office with both feet behind the goal line when he blasted a puck past Casey DeSmith in the Dallas goal.
“The power play has been a bright spot,†Knoblauch said. “Not only tonight, but all season.â€
The Oilers have scored a power play in four straight games (5-for-10) and eight of their last nine games (11-for-23). They now have PPGs in five straight road games.
OIL SPILLS — Draisaitlâ€s 10th goal of the season moved him into a tie for the league lead. His six power-play goals lead the league. Since the start of the 2018-19 season, Draisaitl leads the NHL with 146 PPGs, 43 ahead of the next closest player (Steven Stamkos) …Edmonton will enjoy an off day in Dallas on Wednesday, flying home Thursday. Next up is Colorado at Rogers Place on Hockey Night in Canada.
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