Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is heating up, Leon Draisaitl is unstoppable, and Oilers never make things easy for themselves
no trouble scoring goals, cruising to a 6-3 victory and within three points of the division lead.
RYAN NUGENT-HOPKINS IS HEATING UP TOO
You can make it a power play goal in back-t0-back games for Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who opened the scoring with a snipe from the slot after the Oilers broke into the zone on the rush and Connor McDavid found him with time and space. After a very slow start to the season, RNH’s two-point game gives him eight points (4G, 4A) in his last 10 games, and I couldn’t think of a better gift for the Oilers’ top-six than if he can keep cranking it up.
When Nuge is playing at his best, he’s not afraid to use his shot instead of always looking for a passing opportunity, and that was most definitely the case with the goal he scored Saturday. Instead of hesitating or looking for another option when McDavid got him the puck, RNH was already ripping the pill past Adin Hill before he even had time to react to what was happening. If he can keep building some confidence in his own offensive abilities, that would be a major jolt of secondary scoring that this team would love to have, given how he touches the ice in all situations.
LEON DRAISAITL IS UNSTOPPABLE RIGHT NOW
In his last five games, Draisaitl has posted a ridiculous 13 points (5G, 7A), and there doesn’t seem to be much anybody can do about it. Saturday’s three-point effort marked the sixth time he’s done that through the Oilers’ first 30 games, and I’d bet all of Gregor’s money that number will rise significantly before the campaign is done. Who knows how long this current heater will last? These can go on forever when he’s really dialled in, but I’m very much enjoying the dominance as it happens.
The guy is playing some of the best hockey we’ve ever seen, and it’s a lot of fun to know he will be doing this in an Oilers uniform for the next decade.
THE OILERS NEVER TAKE THE EASY ROAD, DO THEY?
If you thought having a five-goal lead would be enough for a boring win, you haven’t been an Oilers fan for long enough. You haven’t felt the pain of watching this team piss away a lead so big that you were already spending the winnings from the bets you put down before the game. For whatever reason, the Oilers have a history of doing things the hard way, and the three straight goals they gave up to allow Vegas to get back in the fight was undoubtedly another chapter in that same story.
Who knows what would have happened had Jeff Skinner not responded to Vegas’ goal early goal with his quick snipe from the slot that restored Edmonton’s three-goal lead? If we’re being honest with ourselves, I’m sure we’d all admit how there was a point this season where this team could have easily coughed up five consecutive goals, and having that not happen is a testament to the Oilers’ growth. Even with a little bit of adversity knocking at the door, the Oilers found a way to close out a very good opponent. That said, it would be great if we could remember not to take our foot off the gas at any point next time. Thank you.
OTHER THINGS WORTH MENTIONING
1. Zach Hyman has been on fire since coming back from injury, and the streak continued with a vintage ZMH goal from the edge of the crease. RNH made a pretty play to get him the puck and Hyman made no mistake on getting it around and past Adin Hill’s pad despite being right on top of him. Hyman also gets bonus points on the play for finding the net without touching the goaltending, which can be a challenge for our beloved author at times.
2. It took Connor Brown 30 games to score more goals (5) than he had last year (4) in 71 games played. That puts him on pace for a 13-goal season, which would be some very nice third line production imo.
3. Corey Perry has six goals in 30 games. You didn’t see that coming, did you? I didn’t. I didn’t have much in the way of expectations for Corey Perry for the 2024-25 season, and I fully admit how wrong I was about the way the start of his year would go. He’s not the Hart Trophy winning player he once was, but even at 39 years old, he’s finding a way to contribute big goals.
4. The Oilers built themselves a 5-0 lead and then coughed up two goals in 26 seconds. That sequence gave Vegas life when there was no reason to have any left, and it’s a detail the Oilers must clean up going forward.
5. Can we give Darnell Nurse some love for the ridiculous backhand pass he gave Leon Draisaitl for the back door tap-in? The guy is playing out of his mind right now, and it’s been so much fun to see him excel and SIUTBOHC. Again, I know people are never going to let his contract go, but this might be as close as he’s come to living up to that number, and that’s a massive win for the Oilers’ back end.
6. Even with the mistake on Vegas’ third goal, that’s six straight games with a save% of .929 or better for Stuart Skinner. There have absolutely been bumps in the road, but that’s a stellar run for Skinner, who is looking really solid between the pipes over these last few weeks.
7. Is anybody else really starting to love Ty Emberson? It can’t be just me, right? The more this kid plays — Saturday’s game was only his 58th career outing — the more he’s settling into his role on the team’s third pairing. I know that when the Oilers acquired him in the Cody Ceci trade, the expectation was that he would jump into the lineup in a top-four role right away, but that may not have been fair on our part. Instead, he needed some time to find way his way, which shouldn’t necessarily be surprising for a 24-year-old d-man.
8. Huge shout out to the two posts the Golden Knights hit. Those were a massive help in the end.
9. With their win on Saturday, the Oilers are now 8-3-1 in matinees over their last couple of seasons. The daylight hour curse may be broken, my friends. It just might be.
10. We’re nearing the midway point of the 2024-25 season, so we should be getting close to hearing about Mark Stone’s annual back issues. It’s a tradition you can set your watch to.
11. Just because Saturday’s game was a matinee didn’t mean I forgot to tell you that the Oilers won 42.6% of the faceoffs. I want to complain, but I’m choosing not to nitpick the win this time.
