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51 Seconds and a Shut Out

The Oilers beat the Predators 3-0

By OilFanInYYC
Oiler win against the Predators
Oiler win against the Predators
Mike Strasinger-USA TODAY Sports

After a disappointing loss at the hands of the Chicago Blackhawks at home the Edmonton Oilers headed on the road to face the Nashville Predators. The Oilers went into the game outscoring their opponents 16-6 in their last 10 periods of hockey. Yes they had a rough game against the Blackhawks but the Predators presented an opportunity for the Oilers to redeem themselves.

Highlights

The Second Goal

Sam Gagner intercepts a pass to the middle and breaks out with Taylor Hall. Kevin Klein tries to direct Ryan Ellis to cover Hall but it doesn't appear that Ellis knows what is going on. Klein tries to take away the pass but goes down too late to intercept the pass. Gagner gets the puck over to Hall who slides it between the 5-hole on Marek Mazanec. This goal came 51 seconds after Ryan Nugent-Hopkins goal from Jeff Petry.

Tweet of the Night

The Tweet tonight is more of a comment on how some of the Oilers decisions this season, as bad as it has been, have rubbed off on other teams. The Predators pulled Mazanec with 2:45 left on the clock when down 2-0.

Take Aways

Ilya Bryzgalov

I know I've been skeptical and I'll admit that this is only one game but Bryzgalov had a very solid performance. If he can keep up this type of performance, and I don't mean shutout after shutout, he could be part of the solution. Devan Dubnyk has done his job well and maybe platooning them will help this team succeed. We'll get a better idea of Bryzgalov's skill when the Oilers face better competition.

The Fourth Line

What a relief to see some real players on the fourth line. Here is Jason Strudwick's comment on the Oilers fourth line.

The thing that Strudwick doesn't understand is that even if the Oilers fourth line isn't the whole problem it is part of it. If the Oilers can only run 3 lines that produce then when they face real competition they will run into problems. Face punchers and enforcers that can't play hockey cripple the team. It was nice to see Will Acton and Luke Gazdic out of the line up.

Mark Arcobello

He lead the team in Corsi for the night! When the game was close he was 100% CF the rest of the night he was 69% CF. That is phenomenal and he did it playing with guys like Jesse Joensuu and Ryan Jones. I hope the Oilers never, ever opt for Will Acton over Arcobello again.

Anton Belov

Again another strong game. If I was Craig MacTavish I would lock up Belov before Justin Schultz. This guy is a real player and just keeps getting better. Great move by MacT this offseason.

Three Stars

  1. Ilya Bryzgalov
  2. Mark Arcobello
  3. Anton Belov