Even without suspended superstar Connor McDavid, the Edmonton Oilers pounded the Grade A shots on Tuesday night against Washington in a 3-2 loss.
The difference in the game was great goaltending from Washington’s Logan Thompson — who was strangely left off of the Team Canada roster — and the fact that the Edmonton power play without McDavid was anemic, with not one Grade A shot in three opportunities.
The Grade A shots in the game were 16 for Edmonton, eight for the Caps, with the subset of 5-alarm shots six for the Oilers, five for the Caps.
Leon Draisaitl, 8. He got it done at least. Made no mistake on the second Grade A of the game, burying a backhander for the game’s first goal. Almost scored again late in the first tipping a shot over the crossbar. He charged up ice to set up Perry’s goal in the third. He played a team high 23:41. Contributions/mistakes on Grade A shots (GAS): Even Strength +5/-1; Special Teams 0/0
Vasili Podkolzin, 5. He won a faceoff circle battle, kicking off the Virtuous Cycle on Drai’s first period goal. Some struggles on defence, tho. GAS: ES +2/-4; ST 1/0
Viktor Arvidsson 6. He kicked off the Sequence of Pain on Wash’s first goal by dropping a pass that went astray at the o-zone blueline. A moment he made a wicked tip on net off a Kulak outside shot, then followed up with another dangerous one off an Ekholm outside shot. He got obviously tripped up in the third but no call. Of course, Nurse was called a moment later for his second marginal stick check call of the night. GAS: ES +4/-1; ST 0/0
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, 5. He almost scored on a hard, high wrister in the first. Quiet game otherwise. GAS: ES +01-0; ST 0/0
Connor Brown, 8. Had it going on this game. Major contributions to six Grade A shots. He set up Draisaitl for a dangerous tip shot late in the first. Cobro got two grade As in the second, one short-handed, the other off a Janmark rush at even strength. GAS: ES +5/-0; ST 1/0
Mattias Janmark, 7. Great work to set up RNH’s first period Grade A by winning a puck battle, then made a fine pass. He almost drained a rebound shot off Nurse’s great rush chance early in the second. Set up some Grade As in the second. GAS: ES +4/-0; ST 1/0
Adam Henrique, 6. Solid on defence, but only one good sequence on the attack. He set a strong pick on the initial outside shot, then went hard to the net and pounded a 5-alarmer into Thompson late in the second. GAS: ES +2/-0; ST 0/0
Zach Hyman, 6. Solid enough game, but no magic. Broke up ice hard in the first to take a pass and drive a hard shot on net. GAS: ES +3/-0; ST 0/0
Jeff Skinner, 6. He worked hard and to good effect. Good pass on Hyman’s first period break-in shot. GAS: ES +3/-0; ST 0/0
Kasperi Kapanen 6. Solid effort. He threw a lot of hits, five to lead the team. He charged up ice for a hard Grade A short-handed in the third. GAS: ES +0/-0; ST 1/0
Corey Perry, 7. Another good game. Was taken down in the slot to draw a penalty late in the second. He nacho’d a goal in the third, pounding in a one-time blast, the goal coming after a fan had thrown a platter of nachos onto the ice, which ticked off and distracted Thompson, though it did not impact the play directly. GAS: ES +1/-0; ST 0/0
Noah Philp, 4. He didn’t play much and was quiet out there when he did. GAS: ES +0/-0; ST 0/0
Evan Bouchard, 3. Not his best game, not even close. He was unable to move out Protas from the crease on the second Caps goal, though that’s hardly big news, given Protas is as big as an NBA power forward. Rancid turnover on Edmonton’s second period power play, which led to Mattias Ekholm taking his spot on the to punit when the third period opened with 90 seconds of power play time. But the power play failed to muster a Grade A shot at that time as well. He got turnstiled by big Protas on a rush early in the third. GAS: ES +1/-3; ST 0/0
Mattias Ekholm, 5. Ok but no major impact. He saved his own bacon by diving to slash away a pass that led to a Caps breakaway by Ethen Frank. He made a solid stop then sent off Kapanen on his third period Grade A. GAS: ES +1/-0; ST 1/0
Darnell Nurse, 8. He was great, but had two iffy penalty calls against him. He continues to impress, looking as smart skating with the puck as he has in years. Great eyes-up pass on Edmonton’s first goal. He must be over the injuries that plagued him. Took the puck in the d-slot, charged up ice, worked a give-and-go with Cobro early in the second and almost scored. He took two slashing calls, but — call me crazy — they looked like hard but legal stick-checks to me. He kept a clean sheet at even strength, not one major mistake on a Grade A shot against at even strength. GAS: ES +3/-0; ST 0/0
Ty Emberson, 7. Good game. Threw some hard hits, moved the puck well. He got called after the nacho-riffic goal for a strange removing-the-helmet penalty, possibly a make-up call. Knocked Tom Wilson off his feet with a check, which is memorable. GAS: ES +1/-0; ST 0/0
Troy Stecher, 6. Lots of good on the attack, but a key mistake on defence. Some sharp play in the first period saw him chip in on two Grade A shots. He got beat at the blueline and failed to take Dubois on the rebound on the third Caps goal. GAS: ES +5/-2; ST 0/0
Brett Kulak, 3. Not his bet game either. He failed to cut out the 2-on-1 pass on the first Caps goal. He got beat at the blueline with a quick pass on Washington’s third goal. Hockey happens fast and can bring a nasty burn. GAS: ES +1/-3; ST 0/0
Stuart Skinner 4. He lets in three goals on just eight Grade A shots. He had only one Grade A in the first, but it was a tough one that beat him, a 5-alarmer on the rush, the kind of shot Skinner has struggled with now and then this year. It was a mighty job to fight through the a Total Eclipse of the Sun Aliaksei Protas screen in the second, and Skinner wasn’t up to it on the second Caps goal. He cleaned up his own mess stopping a break-in shot after he turned over the puck in the third. He got beat with a shot off the post, which was then pounded home for the third Caps goal.
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