Now this one was heartbreaking.
Forget about all the low-energy, low-effort, and just bad hockey losses that came before this. Last night's 2-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning was just that—heartbreaking.
This wasn't another night where they sleepwalked through two periods and woke up too late. This wasn't another game where they allowed seven goals or gave up five on 19 shots. This was everything everyone has been asking for all season, and they still lost.
So go ahead, feel sad, not frustrated. You deserve it (for once).
The Oilers came out with energy from the opening shift. They played physically. Darnell Nurse fought Conor Douglas just six minutes into the game. Trent Frederic scored first at 1:32, taking a feed from Leon Draisaitl and beating Andrei Vasilevskiy clean. Edmonton had the lead, had the momentum, had everything working the way it's supposed to work.
Then they sustained it. They limited Tampa Bay's chances. They played disciplined defensively. They gave Calvin Pickard a chance to succeed instead of hanging him out to dry with defensive breakdowns and odd-man rushes. And then comes the heartbreak. They let off the gas in the third period. They gave a skilled Tampa Bay team the chance to tie the game, and looked surprised when it happened.
“There’s a lot of things to be happy about,” began Kris Knoblauch. “We’ve been talking about how to play better defensively and better awareness, and just digging in in those areas, and just a lot of good defensive plays tonight. And obviously Picks had a heck of a game, especially in the third period.
"But you can see a fragile group in the third period. We’re just a shell of ourselves, not wanting to make a mistake and holding on, and when you hold on, you just have to defend over and over again. Unfortunately, they score that tying goal and it was too bad because it was a good effort for a lot of guys.”
How Seriously Should Oilers Fans Take Connor Clattenburg?
Connor Clattenburg spent 26 minutes in the penalty box Saturday night. Two fights, a 10-minute misconduct, and enough chippy play to make Coachella Valley want to send him a bill for emotional damages. The Bakersfield Condors won 6-3. Clattenburg didn’t score. He didn’t set up a goal. He did exactly what he’s supposed to do, and that’s the story.
Nicholas Paul tied the game with 2:32 left in regulation. Jake Guentzel ended it 3:17 into overtime, and the Oilers walked away with one point instead of two.
But here's what makes this loss different from all the others: when you lose, giving up seven goals to Washington, you can point to obvious problems. When you lose 5-1 to Buffalo, you can identify what went wrong. But last night? We saw what the Oilers could have done all season, and what they can do for the rest of it—at least for 40 minutes.
And here's what we've all come to realize: this is the kind of game they need to be playing every night. Not just when they're desperate. Not just after getting embarrassed 9-1 by Colorado. Every single night. The energy. The physicality. The structure. The compete level. That needs to be the standard, not the exception.
Oilers' Inconsistency Reaches Peak After Latest Loss
Nobody knows what to expect from the Edmonton Oilers anymore. Not the fans. Not the media. Probably not even the players themselves. One night they beat Carolina on the road playing exciting, physical hockey. Two nights later they lose 5-1 to Buffalo. They commit to playing with more urgency, then deliver low-effort performances that make you wonder if anyone's actually listening.
So yes, the Oilers lost, again. They gained another lead they couldn't hold, again. They walked out of another arena without two points, again. And if that's all you focus on then you're missing something bigger.
The difference between Thursday's loss and all the others is that this one feels like progress despite the result. Losing 7-4 to Washington felt like a regression. Losing 5-1 to Buffalo felt like the same problems repeating themselves. Losing 2-1 in overtime to Tampa Bay after playing structured, responsible, and physical hockey felt like the foundations for something better.
“Just playing with that intensity and that attention to detail, because any team that wins consistently has to be a good defensive team,” Knoblauch said when asked what the team can carry forward. “Yes, you've got to be able to score goals, but the most important thing is just keeping the puck out of your net.
"I feel that if we can play good, solid defensive hockey, that we’ll get our opportunities and we’ll score enough goals that we should win most nights.”
Pre-game Stat Pack
9-9-4 | 22 PTS
This loss hurts worse than all the bad losses that came before it because it was a good game that didn't get rewarded. Because they finally played the way they're supposed to play and walked away with one point instead of two.
But if the choice is between losing while playing the right way or losing while playing badly, take the former every time. The Oilers can build on Thursday night. They can carry that energy and structure forward. They can prove this wasn't just one good game but rather the start of playing consistently the way they're capable of playing.
This loss hurts. But it hurts because they finally played well enough to win and didn't. That's better than not playing well enough and losing anyway. Progress sometimes looks like heartbreak. Thursday night was both. And that's the kind of loss you can build on if you're willing to trust the process even when it doesn't immediately pay off.
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