Are The Oilers Boring? Edmonton Wins 3-1 Against Sharks

Even with two of the best offensive players in the NHL, Mike Babcock has the Edmonton Oilers playing some pretty boring hockey.

Saturday's 3-1 win over the San Jose Sharks had a combined total of just 40 shots, while Edmonton managed only eight through the first two periods. For a team capable of scoring— and giving up — a touchdown, that's a pretty unusual way to win a hockey game.

Vasily Podkolzin, who scored his fifth goal in five games, admitted afterward that he's still getting used to the way Babcock wants his team to play.

“The whole system is a little different,” Podkolzin said. “The main point is a little different, and the way we play — in the D zone or neutral zone — is way different than we played before. Like I can say, that's boring sometimes, and feeling weird sometimes. But it works.”

And well, he's not wrong.

Edmonton has won its last three games, including a pair of 3-1 W's over Seattle and San Jose, and has allowed just one even-strength goal during that stretch. The Oilers are also giving up an average of 23.2 shots per game, down from 26.7 last season, which is a pretty significant improvement considering what their defensive game looked like against Vancouver to open the season.

Most fans have gotten used to watching Edmonton win games because No. 29 and No. 97 had to go out, score who knows how many in a row, before the other team inevitably found the back of the net again. So watching a team go 40 minutes with eight shots on goal and still be in complete control of what happens on the ice is a nice change.

“We didn't generate anything off the rush tonight,” Babcock said. “So we had to do it the hard way in the end. We scored a rush goal, but it was after some heavy O-zone play and we got a counter. But Jars (Jarry) played great and gave us a chance on the road, and that's all you can ask.”

Podkolzin's winner came of a pass from McDavid early in the third, and Alex Formenton eventually added another after Mathieu Joseph sent him in on a breakaway. Mattias Ekholm had opened the scoring after Edmonton's fourth line won a puck battle along the boards, giving the Oilers goals from three different parts of their lineup.

It was also an impressive performance from rookie Owen Michaels, who won 10 of his 12 faceoffs while going up against Macklin Celebrini, and 83 per cent overall. Comparatively, San Jose's young star finished with six wins on 16 draws.

Mathieu Joseph also seems to have bought into Babcock's approach, explaining afterward why the Oilers are putting so much emphasis on their defensive game.

“We have the offence to score every night. We all know that,” Joseph said. “The recipe in this league is to play good defence, and when you limit the chances, you frustrate the best player on the other team, and you're disciplined with your plays and your penalties, that's how you win.”

Considering what Edmonton has gone through over the last few seasons, Joseph makes a fair point.

Saturday was also Tristan Jarry's first appearance since allowing six goals against Vancouver in the season opener, and he looked comfortable. Macklin Celebrini beat him with an excellent shot, but Jarry stopped the other 19 attempts he faced and gave Edmonton another strong performance in goal.

Now both Jarry and Devon Levi have put together good games behind this defensive system, which is something Oilers fans haven't been able to say very often lately.

Of course, we're only five games into the season, and it's worth wondering how everyone will feel about this style of hockey once they've played another 40 or 50.

Podkolzin admitting that the system feels strange at times is interesting because he's also one of the players benefiting from it. He has five goals through five games, including Saturday's winner, and seems perfectly willing to accept a little boredom if it means the Oilers keep winning.

Babcock also believes his team has plenty of room to improve, particularly with some injured forwards getting closer to returning.

“We think we can be way better,” Babcock said. “So if you can be way better, why wouldn't you be way better? I mean, (Jason) Dickinson's starting to get his legs, so he's getting to be an important piece again. As we get more guys back — I think Hymes (Hyman) is showing up next game — we should get to be a deeper team and a much better team.”

Zach Hyman is expected to return against Los Angeles on Tuesday, which would give Edmonton another important piece of its forward group. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Matt Savoie are more uncertain about their timelines.

For now, though, Edmonton is winning games without needing its best players to score five points every night, and its goaltenders are finally getting some help from the players in front of them.

Maybe Podkolzin is right, and this is going to be a pretty boring season of hockey in Edmonton. That said, I'm not sure too many Oilers fans would complain if boring hockey finally got them somewhere.

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