The Edmonton Oilers lost 5-3 to the New Jersey Devils in a Saturday matinée from the Prudential Center. Edmonton outshot New Jersey 30-23 and got two goals from Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and one from Curtis Lazar, but it wasn’t enough. The Devils got two goals from Jack Hughes, and goals from Jesper Bratt, Dawson Mercer, and Connor Brown. The Oilers fall to 2-2-1 on the young season.
This was another sloppy and disappointing effort from the Oilers. They looked out of sync and had too many unforced errors, which must be cleaned up as the season progresses. With that said, here are three takeaways from this frustrating performance.
Curtis Lazar Made His Oilers Debut
Lazar made his Oilers debut against his former team, playing on the fourth line alongside Adam Henrique and David Tomasek. He replaced rookie Isaac Howard in the lineup, who was healthy-scratched for the first time in his young career. Lazar signed a one-year deal with Edmonton in the offseason and was brought in as a right-shot depth option who kills penalties. But he won’t see much playing time, especially when Zach Hyman and Mattias Janmark return from their injuries.
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The former Edmonton Oil King lit the lamp with three seconds remaining, and finished the game with one goal, one shot, and two hits in a team-low 10:21 of ice time. He also spent 42 seconds on the penalty kill during their three opportunities. There weren’t many positives to choose from this game, but Lazar had a decent debut in minimal ice time.
Oilers’ Offensive Struggles Continue
The Oilers’ offence has yet to get going, and it starts from the back end. They are one of only two teams thus far without a goal from their blue line, and that trend continued in this one. The only other team without a goal from their blue line is the Utah Mammoth. The Oilers are also tied for the fewest points by defencemen with four, and Evan Bouchard has yet to find the scoresheet. They are still without Jake Walman, so hopefully his return and puck-moving ability will help get the puck to the forwards quicker and generate more scoring chances.
New Jersey Devils goaltender Jake Allen makes a save on Edmonton Oilers forward Curtis Lazar (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
While they did score three goals, two of them came in garbage time. The game was seemingly over by that point. They failed to create quality scoring chances and second-chance opportunities. The visitors weren’t dangerous and rarely had consecutive solid shifts in the offensive zone. They strung together two good offensive zone shifts after the Devils went up 2-0 and finally got on the board. The third line went to work down low, and then the top line hopped over the boards and finished the job to bring the road squad within one. However, those consecutive shifts were few and far between.
They also need to shoot the puck more. They passed up on quality opportunities, looking for the perfect play. You won’t score by passing the puck into the net, so when you have a chance, rip the puck and hopefully create rebounds and traffic toward the net. This performance isn’t good enough, and they need to figure it out offensively.
Oilers’ Power Play Has Cost Them Back-to-Back Games
The Oilers have allowed a shorthanded goal in back-to-back games, and that proved costly. They gave up a shorty against the New York Islanders, which tied the game near the end of the second period. The momentum shifted after that, and the Islanders took over in the third period.
Then, Edmonton had a chance to tie the game at two with a power play opportunity midway through the final frame. However, Brown got a shorthanded breakaway off a terrible read by Bouchard at the Devils’ blue line, and he made no mistake against his former team.
At the end of the day, the Oilers lacked urgency and energy, which was apparent. They need to be better. The Oilers continue their five-game Eastern Conference road trip with a Sunday (Oct. 19) matinée against the Detroit Red Wings on the second half of a back-to-back. Keep following The Hockey Writers for all your NHL content throughout the season.
