I hope that all of our American hockey fans and Inside The Rink readers had a happy Thanksgiving yesterday. I believe they have a lot to be thankful for. I am particularly cheering for teams that are not the Edmonton Oilers.
In the Florida trip, they had two-goal leads that they couldn’t hang onto. Against Carolina, it was over the moment it even started. They’d allowed four goals in five minutes, starting at the nine-minute mark. They’d scored a few more goals to make it slightly interesting. But it was too little too late when they finally showed up to the game. When the team has a good start, they don’t keep the momentum going. When they’re off to a terrible start, the game already ended. What more can they possibly do to string more than just a couple of wins together? In the second period, when it was 5-1, the camera turned to Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl sitting on the bench, giving each other glove taps as a sign of comfort amongst teammates. A sort of “Hang in there” moment between our Ride Or Die duo. Hockey is a team game, but they feel the exhaustion of a bad start to the season more than anyone else. There are bigger issues on the season than just them, but it’s not the same McDrai from years past. They’re broken, and it can be really hard to fix a locker room lacking confidence. Coaching wasn’t the problem; they still can’t believe Jay Woodcroft and Dave Manson were let go.
Oilers Twitter got pretty excited yesterday when news broke out about Corey Perry not practicing with the Chicago Blackhawks. It instantly made the fanbase think Edmonton traded for him. While Perry wouldn’t solve the defensive issues, I wouldn’t be against having him. The Oilers do miss having a sort of swagger and pest vibe that Klim Kostin brought to the team last year. Perry would address those areas, as well as bring in Stanley Cup experience. And he has still been a pretty decent player at the age of 38, putting up nine points in 16 games played so far with the 31st-place Blackhawks. Some money would have to go the other way if a trade for him were to happen, as he makes $4M this season. Sam Gagner hasn’t shown much since his first game, and Adam Erne’s only highlight is an elbowing minor that should’ve also been a suspension. Perry would help the bottom six in some ways.
TSN’s Ryan Rishaug stated that most assets, except this year’s first-round pick, have to be in play for a trade that can help the Oilers. I both agree and disagree with this take. If by some divine miracle, they were offered a legit #1 goaltender, wouldn’t the other GM ask Ken Holland for a first-round pick? Even if it’s unprotected, lord knows you don’t need another really high draft pick. And you’re trying to win games, so you wouldn’t even be giving up Macklin Celebrini anyway. But that doesn’t mean just blindly offering big assets for ANY player. Every team in the league fully expects Holland to offer something dumb as a desperation move because his team is in that much trouble. Unless it’s someone in the Connor Hellebuyck, Juuse Saros, or Carter Hart quality, the cost for a backup or 1A goalie shouldn’t be that expensive.
Some insiders think Edmonton could also look to internal options, such as continuing to wait and see if Jack Campbell finds his game again in Bakersfield. First of all, congrats to Soup on his shutout recently. But one good AHL game out of four still doesn’t inspire a big enough change of heart to bring him back. If Oilers management really decides to bring him back up after only that, then fans really would give up on the season, if most of them haven’t already.
The Oilers sit 10 points out of a Wild Card after American Thanksgiving, a day every hockey fan or expert indicates as an outlier for which teams clinch or don’t clinch a Playoff spot. They have three games in hand on the Seattle Kraken, the team with that Wild Card. If Edmonton were to win those games, they’d suddenly be 4 points out. But the Oilers also need Seattle and the other teams in front of them to lose more than win, and they need to start winning more than losing. It’s not pretty, but still not impossible. Let’s try to end an awful road trip on a positive note. The keys to the game are…
Charlie’s Angel: Not many analysts close to the Oilers have considered Charlie Lindgren as a trade option. He’s had five starts and has posted four wins with a .940 SV%. Although, with the Caps looking pretty good in the standings, why would they part with him now?
Aging Ovi: It’s been a fun ride to watch Alex Ovechkin attempt to pass Wayne Gretzky’s NHL goal record; he just needs 68 more between this year and 2026. But the future Hall Of Famer isn’t having the same start with goals as he usually does. Has his body finally worn out on him? He has thrown a lot of hits, too. Or does he miss having Nicklas Backstrom as his centerman?
Greater Focus: Don’t fall asleep during a shift. Don’t allow four goals in five minutes. Edmonton had a habit of doing this at times last season. They need a good start and a good finish. If they play a period similar to the first period against the Hurricanes, you might as well just forfeit the rest of the game and let the fans go home early.
