Lucky number 13, and it was against their biggest rivals. The Edmonton Oilers recorded their 13th win in a row on Saturday night against the Calgary Flames, clinching the NHL record for most consecutive wins by a Canadian team previously held by the 1967/1968 Montreal Canadiens with 12. It was a real thrill for all the Oilers fans who attended the game in Calgary to witness it live. Seeing the teams wear their Heritage Classic jerseys again was pretty cool. During that whole game, you could mostly only hear Oilers fans cheering inside the Scotiabank Saddledome. Maybe it was because of the jersey colors on both teams, but even on my T.V., it felt like a home game rather than a road game. Were it not for goaltender Dan Vladar, Edmonton could’ve been up 3-0 or 4-0 after the first period. He made brilliant save after brilliant save throughout the opening 20 minutes. He may’ve wanted revenge for how I forgot when writing my keys to that game that Jacob Markstrom wouldn’t be playing because he’s currently injured. But early in the third period, when it was tied, Sam Gagner banked in a lucky goal from behind the net. They don’t ask how; they ask how many. Zach Hyman put the game away by scoring the most hardworking empty-net goal I’ve ever seen. The puck exited the Edmonton zone, then he beat Rasmus Andersson in a race for it and skated around the empty Flames net. The NHL announced their replacements for the injured Connor Bedard and Jack Eichel at the upcoming All-Star game, and they snubbed Hyman again. Perhaps it’s because they couldn’t fit a disallowed goal challenge into the All-Star Weekend schedule. Stuart Skinner also tied a franchise record with that win on Saturday. He and hall-of-famer Grant Fuhr share the record for most consecutive wins by an Oilers goaltender with 10. Since November 24th, he has a 17-2 record that features two shutouts, a 1.84 GAA and a .932 SV%. Even with the team crawling its way up in the standings, Skinner’s turnaround feels unbelievable, considering where he was back in mid-November.
Related Article: Should the Edmonton Oilers Acquire Elvis Merzlikins?
Capping off a good Oilers weekend was the breaking news that Corey Perry agreed to sign a contract with Edmonton. He’s expected to play his first game as an Oiler on Saturday against the Nashville Predators, right before the All-Star break. Adam Erne was placed on waivers to make room for him on the roster.
This current winning streak can’t last forever, the Oilers will have to lose again eventually. But these next two games, at least on paper, should be winnable. They’re against teams ranked 28th and 31st in the league, 28th being tonight’s matchup. Unless Edmonton really lays an egg, there are just certain nights that you have to take advantage of and come up with points in the standings. This isn’t the first time or the last time you’ll read this part in an article of mine, but they shouldn’t play down to the level of their opponents; even when they lose. Having a 10-62-10 record when neither Connor McDavid nor Leon Draisaitl gets a point is an embarrassing statistic. Good on them for getting that 10th win on Saturday, but these are the games you fully expect to see their names on the scoresheet frequently. There have been times in the last few game nights when tired habits popped up after winning for so long. The whole team needs to keep their focus intact and keep playing as hungry as they were before they started piling up this many wins. The keys to the game are…
Goalie Audition: I wrote an article last week discussing the idea of trading for goaltender Elvis Merzlikins. You have to imagine the better goalie on the opposing side getting the start against a top-heavy team. What better way to study a trade target than to play against them?
Pick(ard) Your Spots: Calvin Pickard was in the starter’s net at Oilers practice yesterday, indicating that he may get the start in this game. He’s played some dependable hockey as Edmonton’s backup goalie. If it’s not actually Merzlikins in net for Columbus, then it could just be a battle of the back-ups. But if it is Merzlikins, like I brought up in my first key, Pickard will have to step up his game a tad more to win this tilt.
Just Adam, No Eve: Oilers fans will get their first game long look at the 2023 third overall pick Adam Fantilli against their team. He was red hot in December, with 13 points in 14 games. But he’s been cooling off in January, with just 2 points in his last seven games. These sorts of stretches are normal for an 18-year-old rookie, but he may have more inspiration to get his offensive groove back playing against McDavid and Draisaitl for the first time.
