Oct 17, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Edmonton Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm (14) passes the puck towards the Nashville Predators through the second interval at Bridgestone Area. Obligatory Credit score: Steve Roberts-Imagn Pictures A pair of struggling groups determined to alter their fortunes will hit the ice when the Edmonton Oilers play host to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday.
Each the Oilers and Penguins are on a quest to rebound from disappointing extra-time setbacks of their final outing.
The Penguins arrive after surrendering a lead within the ultimate minute of regulation en path to a 4-3 shootout loss to the Calgary Flames on Tuesday, whereas the Oilers wasted a two-goal third-period lead in a 3-2 time beyond regulation loss to the Carolina Hurricanes that very same night.
Edmonton, which got here into the season with excessive hopes after reaching Recreation 7 of the Stanley Cup Closing, has solely two wins in seven video games and owns the third-worst objective differential within the NHL (minus-13).
Regardless of the struggles, the message is to stay calm. In spite of everything, this can be a group that rebounded from a month-long skid final season earlier than altering its fortunes.
“I am utterly assured in our group,” defenseman Mattias Ekholm mentioned. “I do know it is early within the 12 months and it is a matter of working by it, and I wasn’t anticipating all people to be firing the place we left off or whatnot. It may take just a little little bit of time, however I do like our group and I feel we’re heading in the right direction.”
The Oilers are surprisingly combating the man-advantage. Their vaunted energy play has scored solely twice this season (2-for-19) and is tied for twenty seventh within the league at 10.5 %, and personnel adjustments are being tried previously couple of practices.
“With the way in which their season has gone, there’s been plenty of issues to handle: the facility play, the penalty kill, scoring objectives,” coach Kris Knoblauch mentioned. “(The ability play) was one factor that I did not anticipate that we had been going to have issues doing.”
The Penguins, who’re winless in three video games, have their very own issues, having opened a four-game highway journey with consecutive defeats. Nonetheless, that they had each likelihood to win in Calgary.
“Clearly there’s alternative to get higher, however I feel we had been a heck of so much higher than we have now been in latest video games,” ahead Bryan Rust mentioned. “We did not have large, huge breakdowns like we did within the final three or 4 video games, or no matter it was. So, I feel that we’re positively making strides.”
Regardless that the Penguins wasted a pair of third-period leads, they held momentum for a lot of the conflict, particularly the third interval. They had been simply unable to search out the insurance coverage objective whereas outshooting the Flames 38-25 by time beyond regulation, nor the successful tally within the shootout.
“We had that five-on-five mentality — go in there and outwork them, get the puck out of the nook — and we rating,” Rust mentioned. “I feel we would have liked just a little bit extra of that. It wasn’t there as persistently as we might have preferred. … It is nonetheless a piece in progress, however I feel the intentions are there. I feel we’re making an attempt to play with just a little bit extra tempo. We’re making an attempt to get issues moving into the best course.”
That mentioned, the Penguins have a evident concern that should be addressed. No group has surrendered extra objectives than Pittsburgh, and regardless that goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic confirmed final sport that he would be the one who can solidify that place, he was unable to carry the fort to the ultimate buzzer.
“I received to do a greater job of staying on pucks and simply bailing us on the market,” Nedeljkovic mentioned. “I imply, it wasn’t a really troublesome shot (on Nazem Kadri’s late game-tying objective). It wasn’t a really exhausting shot or a really well-placed shot. It was only a puck on internet, so, not a lot else to it than that.”
–Discipline Degree Media