This past Friday was the first anniversary of the Oilers making their coaching change, shortly after the one-year anniversary of Evander Kane’s Edmonton debut. As mentioned many times, the impact of Jay Woodcroft and Dave Manson behind the bench has been instrumental to how the league now views the Edmonton Oilers. Putting aside how the team looked before early January and the occasional Dave Tippett impressions, there’s still no denying that they have a different outlook now than they did a year ago. The stinker they were due against Montreal was beyond disappointing, but 11 straight games with points was a great run. Just don’t let that stinker lead to a slump. It’s been speculated that Ken Holland got back to talking with former Oilers player and Sharks GM Mike Grier regarding an Erik Karlsson trade. I still think the money gymnastics to make that deal work would be impossible, but if I’m proven wrong, it’ll be a hectic topic. We’ve also heard rumblings about Jesse Puljujarvi being placed on waivers while still looking to trade him. That might be saved until Kailer Yamamoto returns to the lineup shortly, as he’s expected to. We may have finally seen the end of the Bison King era in Edmonton. This week’s opponents are…
Wednesday, February 15th at 7:30 pm vs. Detroit Red Wings
Last week’s game against Detroit got a bit feisty, even ending with Brett Kulak having a fight in his second straight game. Perhaps we will see a home game similar to the one against the Lightning last month? Jeff Marek announced on Hockey Night In Canada that the Oilers have also inquired about Tyler Bertuzzi, whose been having a rough go with injuries but whose swagger would be a nice addition.
Friday, February 17th at 7 pm vs. New York Rangers
In November, the Oilers erased a 3-0 deficit in the third period and won in regulation against this team. Needless to say, that should not be part of the game plan again in the second meeting, especially with Vladimir Tarasenko now being added to the Rangers offense. In last year’s NYRvsEDM game at Rogers Place, Kevin Lowe was having his number 4 raised to the rafters, and McDavid scored one of his McDavid-esque goals. He waited for a chance to get onside, then speeded by four players and buried the puck to tie a game where they were also down by three goals. Everyone has priorities, and we sometimes can’t sit through every game or every shift. Just be warned; there’s always a 50/50 chance you will miss something jaw-dropping.
Sunday, February 19th at 1 pm vs. Colorado Avalanche
Cale Makar was added to Colorado’s never-ending injury bug, though maybe he’ll be good enough to play by this game; you never know. They are starting to make ground now and looking more like the Avalanche team that won the Cup last year once they’re 100% healthy. Nathan MacKinnon made a nice McDavid impression with a goal against Edmonton in their first meeting. The Oilers blew a 2-0 lead and wound up losing that game, but it was hard to be mad after watching that spectacular MacKinnon goal. Just don’t do that again here.
