Oilers tame Panthers

The Edmonton Oilers defeated the Florida Panthers by a score of 4-2 on Saturday afternoon. Stuart Skinner was magnificent, turning aside 40 of the 42 shots he faced.

Tyson Barrie was red-hot for Edmonton as he picked up two goals on the night. It was Warren Foegele, however, who got the game-winner late in the game.

First Period:

The Oilers started poorly once again. Missed passes, lacklustre effort, and not thinking through basic plays. Luckily, Stuart Skinner came to play and bailed them out after an early penalty by Darnell Nurse.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins got the team’s first chance on net nearly 10 minutes in, sending a back-hander off the post. It didn’t count as a shot though, the Panthers led in that regard 11-0 at that point.

Leon Draisaitl had the best chance of the period, wiring a one-timer from his patented spot but Spencer Knight (somehow) came across and gloved it down.

Edmonton got a few short bursts near the end of the period, but couldn’t get on the board. To be honest, they were lucky to be in a scoreless game after the first period.

0-0 after 20 minutes.

Second Period:

A much better start to the second than the first.

Edmonton was showing some signs of life and had a few good looks on Knight. Still, though, no goals on the board.

That better play was rewarded with Tyson Barrie breaking the goose egg with a long-range one-timer that found twine. Edmonton strikes first with a 1-0 lead.

A better period turns into a better result. Edmonton headed into the third period up 1-0.

Third Period:

An early powerplay for the Panthers was all it took to get things knotted up. Old friend, Sam Bennett hoped on a loose puck to finally beat Skinner. 1-1 game early into the period.

Don’t count the Oilers out as Barrie, once again, sent a bomb from the point that beat Knight. His second of the game as Edmonton regains a 2-1 lead.

They got some much-needed insurance from Warren Foegele late in the game after wiring a puck from the slot. Foegele is heating up and the Oilers hold a 3-1 lead.

Thank goodness for it, as the Panthers came right back. It was Bennett, again, as he drove the net and got around Skinner. 3-2 with about four minutes on the board.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins cemented the victory by netting an empty-netter.

Oilers win 4-2 to close out their road trip.

Takeaways:

• The story of the game today was Stuart Skinner. He was excellent for the Oilers and a major reason why they didn’t fall behind early on. Give him a few more consecutive starts.
• I’m a big critic of Tyson Barrie...but I can’t complain about a two-goal game from the guy. A good outing for #22.
• Klim Kostin was pretty decent in his Oilers debut. I didn’t notice him a ton on the ice, but the times did were mostly positive. Had a nice effort toward the net on a feed from Ryan McLeod.
• Brett Kulak had a good performance. He was solid last season and has seemed a little slow this year. He’s been ramping up.
• The Oilers desperately needed Warren Foegele to heat up and they’ve been seeing signs of it on this road trip. A great finish late in the game.
• The Edmonton Oilers get back into the win column with a 4-2 win over the Florida Panthers. They finish their road trip 2-2 and return home on Wednesday for a date with the LA Kings.