Oilers B-game enough for 3-2 OT win against Canadiens A-game

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The Edmonton Oilers did not bring their “A” game to Rogers Place on Tuesday night.

On the other hand, the Montreal Canadiens showed up game for a battle and gave the Oilers all they could handle in a 3-2 OT win for Edmonton. Leon Draisaitl drilled home the winner from his familiar spot, on a 1-timer.

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It could be argued that Edmonton’s best player was Calvin Pickard, who stopped 23 of 25…a number of them of the Grade “A” variety.

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Here is the tale of the tape…

Edmonton Oilers Player Grades

CALVIN PICKARD. 8. Two strong, early saves on Armia. Got a piece of one on the Habs’ PP before it clinked off the post and out. Blocker-ed away a dangerous shot from Anderson in the 2^nd. A well-timed poke check kept a loose puck away from Gallagher. Big pad save on Harvey-Pinard in the 2^nd. A solid block on Roy to end the 2^nd. Little chance on Montreal’s greasy 2-1 goal early in the 3^rd. Got a piece of the 2-2 goal but Guhle was bearing down on him with no Oilers in sight. Stopped Anderson after a turnover deep in the 3rd Period. Pickard and Mattias Ekholm were Edmonton’s two best players.

CONNOR McDAVID. 7. Picked up a puck knocked loose by Ekholm along the wall, beat a man clean then deked the goaltender right-to-left for the 1-0. Looked like he may have had the 2-0 as well as his shot slipped through 5-hole, but the Habs’ defender Guhle swept it to safety. Circled the wagons in the 2^nd then fed Ekholm for a chance. Hustled back (without one glove which had been “removed” by an attacker) to ultimately stymie a Montreal 3-on-1 after the puck his skate and cleared the zone. Terrific O-zone retrieval in OT, dished to Nurse and then again to Draisaitl for the game winner. 9 (yes, 9!) shots.

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EVANDER KANE. 6. A dangerous early chance right in the deep slot off a pass from Hyman. Net front on the 1-0, giving McDavid some room on his route to the net. Nearly made it 3-2 off a good feed from McLeod and drew a call by keeping his feet moving. Was quite effective.

ZACH HYMAN. 5. Nice pass in front to Kane early. Had a chance at a loose puck in front on a 2^nd Period PP. hammered one off the post late in the 3rd. 4 shots,+1. Not as noticeable as he normally is.

DARNELL NURSE. 7. Strong performance. Called for a weak tripping call in the 1^st made by the back referee. But Nurse’s mates killed it off. Strong stick at his own blueline on a 2^nd Period PK. Swallowed up a loose puck after a turnover by his own goalie. Excellent pass to McDavid in the high slot on the OT winner, Nurse earning the secondary assist. Only allowed one 5v5 Grade A chance against on his watch.

TROY STECHER. 5. Solid. The zone entry on the eventual 2-0. 2 hits. Only a single Grade A against 5v5.

LEON DRAISAITL. 6. Leon Draisaitl was the better of this trio which over-all struggled tonight. But he too was off a half-turn. Split two defenders as he was bearing down on the Montreal net in the 2^nd, but the puck chipped off his stick at the last second. 2^nd Period shot off a McDavid pass. Took a hooking call, erasing a 3^rd Period 4v4. Slick pass to Hyman late in the 3rd by Hyman hit the post. Hammered home the Overtime winner from just a stride or two above the goal line off a fine feed from McDavid. A rare night below 50% on the dot.

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RYAN McLEOD. 3. Off night. Whistled for a trip that he flat-out did not commit but the Oilers killed it off. Drilled in shot shares. Scoring Chances 5v5 3-6 on his watch.

WARREN FOEGELE. 4. Struggled. Turned the puck over up the wall in the 3^rd leading to a chance against. A microcosm of an off night for him as well.

MATTIAS EKHOLM. 9. Played just a tremendous game. His aggressive pinch up the left side jarred the puck loose and McDavid did the rest on the 1-0. Excellent 2^nd Period chance off a long developing set-up from McDavid. Activated from the blueline then filtered a terrific pass back-door to Henrique in the slot for the 2-0. High Dangers 4-2 5v5. 2 hits, +2 in 21:07. Edmonton’s best skater tonight.

EVAN BOUCHARD. 7. Hard back-check erased a break when he was pick-pocketed at the attacking blueline. Sharp cross-ice pass for a secondary assist on the 2-0. That was his 50th assist of the season, only he and the great Paul Coffey have hit that mark in Oilers silks. 2 good shots on a 2^nd Period PP. Late to release his man in the middle, leaving all of the left-hand side of the ice on the 3^rd period 4v4 and Montreal capitalized on the open ice with the 2-2. On balance, though, he was quite good.

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RYAN NUGENT-HOPKINS. 5. Could not convert a fine setup from Henrique in front. Solid defensively over 2 periods. Neither he nor Ceci could haul in the goal scorer on the 2-1, but Ceci was primarily at fault. Just o.k.

ADAM HENRIQUE. 6. Good feed in front to Nugent-Hopkins who chipped it wide. Scored his 1^st as an Oiler by getting superior positioning on his man in front and then backhanding a terrific pass from Ekholm home for the 2-0. Drew the Montreal double minor which eventually produced the game winner. 50% on draws. 3 hits.

DEREK RYAN 4. Drew a roughing call in the 2^nd. Credited with 3 hits. -1.

BRETT KULAK. 6. Strong, hard play on Gallagher right in front. Sharp pick-off & clear in the 2^nd. Caught in no-man’s land after Ceci went on a walk-about on the 2-1 goal. Drew a 3^rd Period trip with some challenging work deep in his own zone. By far the better of the two on this pair tonight.

CODY CECI. 4. Rough game. Over-committed on a Montreal rush early in the 3^rd, then did not track down his man until a split-second after the puck had pinballed into the net for the 2-1. 3^rd Period blocked shot. A miserable 6-21, 22% 5v5. Did have 6 hits.

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SAM CARRICK. 5. Give him the edge in a spirited scrap with Pezzetta early in the 1^st. A block & clear on a 2^nd Period PK. Good puck strip, too. Fine 3^rd Period intercept and clear.

MATTIAS JANMARK. 4. Quiet, quiet game. Crushed in shot shares (5v5 CF 5-13, 28%).

COREY PERRY. 4. Good defensive stick in the 1^st. Made some good things happen along the walls late in the 3^rd. But a generally quiet night.

Edmonton’s record now sits at 41-21-4, 86 points. They are 2^nd in the Pacific, 6 back of Vancouver with 2 games in hand.

Find me on Threads @kleavins, on Instagram at LeavinsOnHockey, Mastodon at KurtLeavins@mstdn.social, and X @KurtLeavins.

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