The New Jersey Devils, playing back-to-back games, should have been infield practice for the Edmonton Oilers Friday after they tumbled to the Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues two nights earlier and the Devils played ball.
The Oilers had all their bases covered in the 4-0 win — a goal from Leon Draisaitl, who has a point in all but two of 18 games, an even-strength second-line rebound put-back from James Neal, Alex Chiasson with his first of the season, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins picking up his third and fourth assists against the Devils in two meetings and to round it out, another deflection from role player Gaetan Haas.
Oh, and a calm shutout by Mikko Koskinen, the fifth in his NHL career.
The Devils, who only have two road wins, were even with the Oilers until Draisaitl got his 14th goal in the 22nd minute, tucking it through Cory Schneider’s pads. Then Haas and Neal scored 66 seconds apart late in the second, and the Oilers rolled to their second regulation W in the last 10 games.
“There were some guys who got on the board that were excited to do so. The other three lines really had an impact with their work in the game. That was a good part of it being a team win,” said coach Dave Tippett.
So, now, they’re 11-5-2 as they head to Anaheim and San Jose on a rare mum’s road trip, two points clear of Calgary Flames and three up on Vegas and Vancouver in the crowded Pac8.
“My mum (Marilyn, who is retired from a tax job for the Canadian government) may have to stay for the rest of the month,” joked Chiasson. “I know she’s been pushing all summer for a mother’s trip. My dad’s had five and she said, ‘Enough of that, it’s time for me.’ She was at the game tonight and I’m sure she’s had a few glasses of wine.”
Hey, why not a few glasses of Merlot?
‘We don’t talk hockey …i t’s different when I talk to my dad. He’s a lot more honest,” laughed Chiasson.
Draisaitl got the only goal the Oilers would need — his eighth in the last eight games (14th point) — sliding a breakaway chance through Schneider’s pads after a wonderful 100-foot-on-the-tape pass from Nugent-Hopkins.
“I see more assertiveness in him,” said Devils’ Taylor Hall. “I don’t think he’s riding shotgun with Connor (McDavid) anymore, I think he’s driving the bus sometimes and not afraid to take the game over himself. He’s always had the skill to do that, it’s probably just a confidence thing now, which is the case with a lot of players — you have the tools, everything is there, but it’s really having the confidence to take games over and I think that’s what you’re seeing.”
GOOD NEWS, BETTER NEWS
Haas escaped a serious injury when he lost his balance and slammed his left knee into the side boards seven minutes into the second. He hobbled off, missed a few shifts but was back to tip Matt Benning’s shot past Schneider for his second NHL goal. Both goals have come on deflections.
WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK:
The Oilers caught a break in the first when Koskinen took a shot in the chest, didn’t handle it cleanly and the puck dribbled behind him. Nico Hischier reached around and tapped it in but referee Brad Meier had already whistled the play dead thinking the Oiler goalie had control of the puck.
REVERSE HIT:
Jersey’s first pairing D Sami Vatanen went into the corner boards with Chiasson seven minutes into the game and Chiasson appeared to swing either a forearm or an elbow back at Vatanen, catching him in the face. He lay on the ice for 20 seconds (no penalty), went to the dressing room and didn’t return with presumably concussion-type symptoms. He played just five shifts (2:53).
FROM ONE NO. 1 T0 ANOTHER
Hall, the first player taken in the 2010 draft, has tons of time for teenage teammate Jack Hughes, who was the first name called this past June. He had a quiet night against Oilers but he has nine points in 15 games.
“Tons of skill. He’s quick. he has great edges. When you watch him out there his skating is effortless. He has a chance to make a high-skill play at any time,” said Hall.
“He obviously has a ways to go defensively — 18-year-old centreman, that’s the hardest thing in hockey to do. He’s doing a great job of trying to learn on the fly. And trying to learn in games where we have to win. He’s playing in hard situations.”
BACK AT WORK
Oilers winger Josh Archibald returned to the lineup after being out two weeks with a broken foot. He had some kevlar protection on his skate.
“The best it feels is in my skate because there’s all that support. It’s pretty healed now so it’s nothing to worry about. Stopping and starting, everything is good, I’m explosive off both legs so I haven’t lost anything,” said Archibald, who did a nice job on the penalty-kill with Riley Sheahan.
This ’n that: Joel Persson, a healthy scratch last game against St. Louis and benched against Arizona Monday, came back and picked up his first two NHL points — an assist on Draisaitl’s goal and his second-period shot, pinballed to Neal on the doorstep…This was the second shutout for the Oilers with Mike Smith losing 1-0 in a shootout in Winnipeg. They were blanked 3-zip in Minnesota…Oilers GM Ken Holland didn’t go to Helsinki for the Karjala Cup to watch Jesse Puljujarvi because of personal reasons. Head of pro scouting Archie Henderson is there to get a read on Puljujarvi’s play along with training camp invite Anton Burdasov, captain of the Russian team…Tomas Jurco cleared waivers and is on his way to Bakersfield where he’ll wear No. 28. He didn’t play against San Diego Friday.
Copyright Postmedia Network Inc., 2019
