A five-game series is like having a job evaluation every day for a week. Even if you do well Tuesday, there’s another big test tomorrow.
Imagine a batter versus a pitcher. The count is 1-1. Strike two gives enormous advantage to the pitcher, 2-1 is a hitter’s count. That’s tonight for the Oilers and the ‘Hawks. This is fun, right? RIGHT?
THE ATHLETIC!
Great perspective from a ridiculous group of writers and analysts. I am proud to be part of The Athletic. Here are the most recent Oilers stories.
- New Jonathan Willis: Through 2 playoff games, here’s what we know about the post-pause Oilers
- New Lowetide: How Dave Tippett’s lineup tweaks propelled Oilers to Game 2 win
- New Daniel Nugent-Bowman: If Game 2 wasn’t Connor McDavid at his best, it was damn near close
- Daniel Nugent-Bowman: ‘Just not good enough’: The Oilers have a lot to fix after disastrous Game 1
- Lowetide: Homegrown Oilers players will again take a featured playoff role
- Daniel Nugent-Bowman: Bang for your buck: Ranking the Oilers based on contract expectations
- Lowetide: Could Oilers’ lack of centre depth mean postseason roster shuffle?
- Daniel Nugent Bowman: What the Oilers should be thinking after watching Chicago in exhibition
- Lowetide: Splitting the Draisaitl line may create hot August nights in Edmonton
- Jonathan Willis: Is Philip Broberg on track to be a top-pairing defenceman?
- Lowetide: Oilers’ productive prospect pipeline a welcome change for playoffs
- New Mark Lazerus and Daniel Nugent-Bowman: Breaking down storylines, scouting reports and X-factors for Blackhawks-Oilers
- New Daniel Nugent-Bowman: Oilers scrimmage: Colby Cave gets Maurice Richard treatment in fitting tribute
- Lowetide: Imagining the city of Edmonton with the Oilers in a deep playoff run
- Lowetide: Ken Holland’s roster construction options over the next five months
- Daniel Nugent-Bowman: Inside the bubble: Details on where and how NHL players will live in Edmonton
- Lowetide: What should Oilers fans expect from Connor McDavid in the playoffs?
- Lowetide: Dave Tippett’s postseason strategy against the Blackhawks
OILERS 2019-20 PLAYOFF SCORING
The top two lines have produced points, with McDavid leading the way in brilliant fashion. I’m a fan of Leon Draisaitl and believe he can create offense with any number of the available wingers. In the spring of 2017, he was a hammer with Milan Lucic and Anton Slepyshev (the line scored while getting caved in possession). James Neal has two goals, Chiasson another, the bottom-six forwards are doing good things.
Defensemen haven’t had much of an offensive impact but the second pairing has been good, the top pair was better in Game 2 and the third pair has been exactly as you would expect (dependable).
Goalie Mikko Koskinen has the edge on getting tonight’s start, it’s uncertain he’ll get the next three starts.
OILERS PLAYOFFS CORSI FIVE ON FIVE
Oilers so far this series are 51.5 Corsi (No. 9 in the NHL) and 45.45 goal differential (No. 14). Both numbers five on five.
Possession numbers are not the almighty but do tell us what the puck is doing with specific players on the ice. Edmonton’s bottom-six forwards are routinely in the 40’s in this metric, nice to see some real results from the Khaira and Sheahan lines.
Out clause will of course be part of this and I do believe Puljujarvi could be with the Oilers in 2020-21. That’s a big step from where this landed and spent last winter, seems a spring thaw has resulted in real progress. It’s easy to see how much value he would bring, with cap savings being a massive item. If Ken Holland can offload Alex Chiasson (Puljujarvi), Kris Russell (Caleb Jones) and Matt Benning (Evan Bouchard) it’ll represent $5 million or more shaved off the cap in 2020-21. Massive.
Plenty of room for Holland to wheel, he could add a more substantial goalie or perhaps an upgrade on Riley Sheahan in the middle. I have Bouchard, Lagesson and Gambardella making the team from Bakersfield, and suspect Tyler Benson, Cooper Marody, Ryan McLeod and Theodor Lennstrom may also be in play.
LOWDOWN WITH LOWETIDE
At 10 this morning, we hit the airwaves on TSN1260 with Bruce McCurdy from the Cult of Hockey at the Edmonton Journal. We’ll chat about tonight’s big game and moments in Oilers history when intelligent men had to contemplate the evening game as historic and possibly damaging. Joe Osborne from OddsShark pops by at 11 to talk NHL and NBA odds. 10-1260 text @Lowetide on twitter. We have live sports to talk about and we’re all very excited!
Tough loss…
The officiating was pretty terrible.
Yamamoto hit vs Dach.
Russell holding call.
AA gets holding call against Kane with palm up for one Mississippi…
Kubalik does a bear hug followed by a take down on Nurse and no call.
Nuge was tripped on the opening Oilers PP with no call.
Kassian sat for most of the game then cost the game.
Losing Ennis further disrupted the flow of the game and exposes our lack of top nine winger talent.
Just watching Russell play in the top four on the right side is cringeworthy alone…
Well, better in regulation than a heartbreaker in OT. And as far as point shots being low percentage approach, someone tell that to Oiler opponents over the last decade.
My champ core roster theory:
Champ teams give up 2.00 or less GAA in their series win games.
Have said Nurse and Bear are cup killing rovers.
Time to sit Sheahan and Kassian and put in Haas and Nygard. Sheahan had a major screw up on the tying goal and hasn’t looked like the regular season all series.
Sorry I’m late to the party. Larson out? Ennis injured, Kassian benched?
And I’ve been a pretty steady Larsson criticizer but holy hell he is apparently the only one capable of clearing the crease on the entire Oilers D corpse.
The book on us is clear now: shoot from the point, either our D will tip it in ourselves or they won’t take out the Hawks player standing in the blue paint.
Kassian is the worst Oilers forward. He’s so bad Tippett can’t even play him when Ennis goes down.
And again, I’m not sure Nurse is a top 4 defenceman.
But whatever, we suck 5v5,if hockey has now become a pinball game in the halfcourt, the Oilers are not equipped for that, particularly on D.
They are a PP and counterattack team. If you take away the counter, they’re not scoring 5v5.
He said “F%@ Off Kass”, as clear as day.
I think Tippett plays Smith in Game 4 and goes back to Koskinen for Game 5
I don’t think that’s what he said.
It’s not like reporters make up shit to get clicks and views though (cough cough – Adrian Dater – cough )
Watch all the way to the end…the last few seconds.
https://www.nhl.com/video/highmores-game-tying-goal/t-317754962/c-5395074
man, what do you do for the tenders? You play Smith game 4, but if he sucks it then you blame Tip. If he wins us the game, do you play him game 5 in a back-to-back? I guess it depend how well he stands on his head?
Do you ride Koski the same way Crawford is going to play every game?
This is pretty soap opera but I’ll have to check the tape
That was Sheahan not Archibald I believe. But yes it was a major fuck up
I thought it might have been me imagining it, but someone else saw it too.
Top Cheese
@TENcentHands
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7m
Kassian with a weak shot block attempt on the blue on tying goal.
McDavid watching replay looks like he mutters under his breath “fuck Kass”
We can’t say much about the game winner. Just really bad luck. Bear is doing the right thing there and even then, it had to bounce twice before actually making it into the net. Koskinen not square, didn’t have the right angle. Maybe didn’t see it because of the screen.
The egregious play was the tying goal. Archibald by himself on the defensive half wall with the puck coming to him. LOTS of time. He tries to play it with his skate??? Skate to stick? Is that what I saw? The puck goes off both skate and stick into the slot for full Hawk possession. What an awful play with 5 minutes to go.
I can’t say I’ve ever seen that particular clumsy blunder in such a big game with so little time left.
This team really does seem to be cursed sometimes. Tonight is one of those times.
Nygard/McDavid/Kass
Nuge/Drai/Yamamoto
AA/Sheahan/Archie
Neal/Khaira/Chiasson
Top line – in 35 minutes are positive possession and 3:1 goals.
Bench Kassian. Nygard and Haas. Make it so.
The Blackhawks hit the posts because Koskinen is a big goaltender. The late Toews shot that hit the post would not have gone in if it had been on net.
Still alive, but it’ll be tough to win both on the back to back. Only thing that gives me a glimmer of hope is the Oilers have not played their best game yet. Just gotta win that one Friday and give yourself a chance in game 5
Kassian cost the OIlers the game by skating out of the way of the shot on the tying goal. No guts. I remember Horcoff and Smyth diving face first to block shots in the playoffs in 2006.
Not Kassian He purposely avoided the point shot.
So 12 penalties then none in the 3rd hey? I think there was a visit to the officials room
This game was excruciating on so many levels.
I don’t think Tippet can be happy with many periods in this series. Not his style. It never happens, but I would have liked to have seen a timeout halfway through the 3rd to get a breather and settle things down. Especially with mostly 4 D
Tough loss. Young oilers team can’t play the trap for 20 minutes. I don’t understand why they would even try that tactic.
Anyone else see Dach and think man I wish PJ was him?
Dach and Boq >PJ and Bouch
Also all those pucks that missed the post and hit the backboard — all goals because Koski didn’t get’em. 30 goals or so by my count.
Great. Now where’s HH?
I didn’t like how Nurse left Bear defending 2 hawks.by himself on the winner. Poor puck management by the forwards other than the 4th line in the 3rd.
Even with the reffing BS, the better team won tonight. Koskinen let nine pucks by him, and the post saved his ass five times.
Koskinen was fine.
Ok so seriously. You trade Lafreniere, Lavoie, and the last year of Russell to Ottawa for picks 3 and 5. The Sens get an excellent pair of high pedigree francophone wingers, and the Oil get to slightly divert league anger at another 1rst, and McDavid gets Stutzle and Holtz for the next few years cup window.
Im going to go lose my shit. Good evening all.
Oilers play indicates no they won’t
Brinkmanship
Get em next year boys
Man, that’s a kick in the coin purse
Hit Bear’s stick, Chicago player’s knee, then post and in.
not a problem.. we will win the next two games
Quite possible that Montreal will eliminate the Penguins and the Hawks will eliminate the Oilers.
Bleh.
So if the Oilers would just stop scoring against themselves…
Well…not so much anymore
fuck a little yellow duck
Ah damn. Bear.
damn.. off bear and in the net
Wow this reminds me of Oilers – Wings 2006, Oilers on the wrong end this time.
Ah well
Nnooooooooooooooooooooo
Whelp.
This was fun.
brutal
Brutal. Fuck.
Huh? Think I passed out there for a bit
Kassian bailed on blocking the point shot on the goal. He basically just got out of the way. Couldn’t make it through two games without a lazy blunder.