Oilers fans are happy again… For now.
Before I talk hockey, in case you missed it, Edmonton claimed forward Kasperi Kapanen on Tuesday before their Ottawa game started. He was placed on waivers by the St. Louis Blues. Picked 22nd overall by the Maple Leafs in 2014, he has played 470 NHL games, putting up 209 points. His most productive season was 44 points in 2018/2019. He appeared in 10 games for St. Louis and put up just 1 goal. It’s been so long since I’ve actually watched him play, but I’ve been hearing that he’s a speedy winger. After losing Dylan Holloway, Ryan McLeod, and Warren Foegele in the summer, this could benefit a team that many are labeling too slow this season. With Viktor Arvidsson not having a timeline for return yet, and if Zach Hyman will miss a couple of games, will he slot into the top six? Or can he bring life to the bottom six?
As fun as Tuesday night’s win was, 80% of it was McDrai and Bouchard (totally redeeming himself by the way) combining for 9 points. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins hadn’t scored in 11 games before Tuesday, Hyman has cooled off a bit after a hot few games, and Jeff Skinner is getting the Ralph Krueger treatment that he got in Buffalo. Vasily Podkolzin has been getting assists and has been physical, but we’d all like to see some goals from him once in a while. When Kris Knoblauch was hired a year ago, I started appreciating that he didn’t like making too many changes to a winning lineup. He just let the chemistry in the lines and pairs keep flowing together. But a month and a half into this season, some areas of their game aren’t doing as well as they used to. The powerplay is slightly better than it was in October, but maybe it wouldn’t hurt to move one piece or two around. Try Skinner on the top unit and Nugent-Hopkins on the second. Part of the excitement after the offseason was the idea of seeing two units on the ice more frequently to balance out the offense. But even with the new wingers we got, we’re still seeing just one unit for 1:40. Perhaps there’s something with Kapanen that might be a good fit. I just think it’s not the worst idea to try something new with slumping parts. Back at home for two games and then a week-long break. The keys to the game are…
The Past Is In The Past: The Oilers have a 37-52-4-10 all-time record against the Wild. Every season feels like we’re always losing to Minnesota. They always give our team fits year in and year out. They are to us what we are to the Nashville Predators. One way for Edmonton to be taken more seriously as a long-term contender is to be able to move past these demons of theirs. Don’t succumb to the past, they have to be better against this team eventually.
The Other 97: Kirill “The Thrill” Kaprizov would be the front-runner for the Hart trophy if the regular season ended today. He is second in the league in points with 33 in 18 games, the biggest reason for his team being second place in their division so far. He has 13 points in 9 career games against the Oilers, only one of them is a goal. That means he’s a pretty good playmaker, so don’t give him space to feed a linemate or even shoot the puck. And let’s see if our 97 comes out on top.
Consistency: I mentioned earlier in this piece that Evan Bouchard had a bounce-back game against the Senators. So did Stuart Skinner with a solid performance in net. I wouldn’t say he stood on his head, but he made good saves when he needed to, and I don’t blame him for the goals he allowed. Can these two keep doing that on an almost nightly basis? Nobody is perfect all the time, but neither player can afford more ill-timed gaffes like the ones they were under fire for before the trip to Ottawa. How do they build on their bounce-back game?
