The Edmonton Oilers surrendered an early 2-0 over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night, and ultimately a standings point in a 3-2 shootout set-back.
This game looked more or less in hand 30 minutes deep, the Oilers up 2-0 and way ahead in terms of shots (23-8). But the Red Wings rallied, with two goals inside of three minutes. The Oilers missed some glorious chances to re-take that lead after that, including in Overtime.
Then, Dylan Larkin (the best player on the ice tonight) won it in the showdown after Edmonton had managed to kill off a Detroit PP in O/T.
The Oilers outplayed and outshot the Wings. But those things do not always show up on the scoreboard. And did not tonight.
Here is the tale of the tape…
Edmonton Oilers Player Grades
STUART SKINNER. 7. Strong save on Rasmussen early on in the first. A good blocker save a few shifts later. Zero chance on a shoulder-high deflection through traffic on the 2-1. Stopped Raymond on a clear breakaway the very next shift. Another breakaway next time over the boards made it 2-2, a puck you might hope for a save on, but Skinner was also mostly left to his own devices and the puck got deflected at the last moment, too. Stopped Larkin on three successive opportunities later that same period. Had to stop him yet again on the first shift of the third. Then flashed a pad to absolute rob Larkin right in the slot on the third period PK. Stopped thirty-three of thirty-five. Couldn’t get one in the shoot out, though. But ultimately deserved better.
LEON DRAISAITL. 7. The best Oilers skater tonight. Dumped in the O-Zone on his second shift of the game but no call was forthcoming. Good feed in front that Podkolzin could not quite finish on. Slapped home a one-timer for the 1-0, his thirty-sixth. A fabulous pass beat two defenders but Podkolzin could not drain it five-hole (note the trend). A back-hander next shift just missed. Lovely seam pass to Bouchard on the PP for a chance. Smoked one off the post late in the second. Third frame PP shot. Whistled for a third period slash about half as hard as he absorbs on a nightly basis. Had ten shots. The game’s Third Star.
VASILY PODKLZIN. 4. Could not find the net on a fine feed from Leon early in the first. Went five-hole off a Draisaitl pass but the goalie managed to squeeze it safely between his pads. Zero hits.
VIKTOR ARVIDSSON. 5. Good defensive stick disrupted a Wings sortie in the first. A hit and a hard back check to his own net early in the second. Deflection in front in the back half of the third. Three shots.
JOHN KLINGBERG. 5. Nice outlet on his first shift. Felled with a heavy hit on his second. Displayed a nice touch with the puck under pressure throughout the game. Was on his man in front but the Wings’ stick tipped the puck out of mid-air for the 2-1. High Dangers 5v5 3-4, CF 45%. One shot. Solid start, though.
MATTIAS EKHOLM. 4. Sounded quite sick before the game, did not look that much better on the ice. Second period trip. A point-blank block and a clear on that third period PK. HDSC’s 6-5. Not his best, gave what he had
CONNOR McDAVID. 6. Secondary assist on the 1-0. Very nearly slipped home the 3-0 in a lightning-fast wrap-around. Dangerous looking back-hander on the second frame PP. terrific pass to Brown for a shot in the second. A neat little feed to Buchard who wiggled through coverage for a chance. A tidy pass in front to Len who rang the post. Stopped in the shootout. Had a few issues handling the puck tonight. Rogers Place Ice? No?
RYAN NUGENT-HOPKINS. 5. Just o.k. Excellent back-check maybe saved a goal later in the first. Set up McDavid for a PP chance. Two shots, two blocks. Lost the puck in a shootout.
CONNOR BROWN. 4. Shot off a McDavid pass in the second. But little going on in a (for a while, at least) top six role. -1.
DARNELL NURSE. 7. Edmonton’s best D-man tonight. Drew a tripping call and the Oilers took the 1-0 lead on the resulting power play. No assist but a terrific stretch pass sent the Oilers hurtling into the Wings zone on the 2-0. Hard first period body check. Equally hard back-check in the second. Drew a tripping call early in the third. Four blocks, five hits. High Dangers 5v5 6-4. Continues to have an excellent bounce-back season.
EVAN BOUCHARD. 6. His high-to-low pass fund its way through a defender and onto Draisaitl’s stick for the 1-0. Smart defensive stick ended a Red Wings threat. A good defensive play in his own zone kicked off the sequence leading to the 2-0. Dangerous shot on the Oilers second PP. As good as he had been, he then tossed one away and then was beaten wide, but the puck stayed out. Two hard shots on a second period PP. Did the shimmy-shake through Detroit coverage for a good chance in the second. A steal and a clear on a second period PK. A good PPs hot in the third. Very clever [pay below his own goal line led to a PK clear in the third. Unforced icing with the line dead-tired led to a Detroit flurry. A slapper late almost catapulted over the Detroit goalie and in late, but a stick swatted it away. Six shots in all. Mostly good.
ADAM HENRIQUE. 6. Aggressive play at the side of the net earned him the Secondary assist on the 2-0. Very fine defensive play in his own zone mid-way through the second. Third frame blocked shot. Fifty-seven percent on draws.
JEFF SKINNER. 7. The veteran goal scorer was in the right position at the right time, and able to swing a rebound home for the 2-0. A couple of dangerous high shots in the second. A tremendous back-check eliminated a Detroit 2-on-1 early in the third. His best two-hundred-foot game of the season. Hard to take him out of the lineup after that, no?
ZACH HYMAN. 6. Heavy first period hit. Active play in front helped swing a rebound over to Jeff Skinner for the 2-0. Another dangerous shot up high the very next shift. Drew a second period trip but the PP could not cash. Hard drive to the net mid-way through the third. Seven shots.
BRETT KULAK. 5. Early first period shot. Beaten badly on the 2-2, a poor read on transition and then not even his terrific skating could catch up to a speeding Larkin. Blocked shot and clear on a second frame PK.
TY EMBERSON. 6. Cross-checked in the back near the end wall in the dying seconds of the first period but again…no call. Very nearly git back in time to disrupt Larkin on the 2-2, But…did not. Intercepted a Wings pass in the D-zone with a heady read. Four blocks, two hits.
NOAH PHILP. 4. Important zone clear ended a Red Wings threat late in the first. Fine rush ended in a dangerous chance by Janmark in the second. Second period shot nearly fooled the Detroit goalie. Cleaned up but good on the dot, however (16%).
MATTIAS JANMARK. 4. Second period shot. An excellent stick and a clear on a second period PK. But not much at all 5v5.
COREY PERRY. 4. Quiet 12:57.
The Oilers season record goes to 32-15-4, 68 points, first in the Pacific. Toronto’s in town Saturday.
Now on Bluesky @kurtleavins.bsky.social. Also, find me on Threads @kleavins, Twitter @KurtLeavins, Instagram at LeavinsOnHockey, and Mastodon at [email protected]. This article is not AI generated.
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