May 4, 2017 /

Oilers/Ducks G4: That Was Hard to Swallow

I’m not sure I’ve ever felt such a rush of emotions each way in such a short time as I did last night. I yelled so loud when Drake Caggiula scored the game-tying goal that my cats jumped 4 feet in the air, only to fall into a cone of silence when Silfverberg won it for the Ducks in OT.

Before we get into the match I want to point out that the Oilers really need to stop shitting the bed in the 2nd period like this. The boys were up 2-0 and everything was looking grand. All they had to do was settle in and enjoy the rest of the game. I think it’s great entertainment for them to keep coming back in the 3rd like they have been but whatever McLellan is saying in the 1st intermission, he’s got to stop.

Also, can we get a faceoff win from McDavid/Nuge/Draisaitl? As per the Cult of Hockey podcast, those three won 7 and lost 28… TWENTY-EIGHT!!!

Do you hear that? I think that is the frantic dialing of any upcoming free-agent that can take a bloody draw… Brian Boyle, are you there?

I think that teams with poor character rip refs/linesman when they lose but I would’ve given them a pass last night if somebody would’ve commented on,

  • Getzlaf’s first goal where Cam Talbot was interfered with by Corey Perry (Below). I mean it’s so painfully obvious that it’s interference.
  • The icing being called off in OT. Honestly, WTF?
  • The offside goal.

So these are the goaltender interference rules that apply to this above clips I believe (taken from here),

69.3 Contact Inside the Goal Crease – If an attacking player initiates contact with a goalkeeper, incidental or otherwise, while the goalkeeper is in his goal crease, and a goal is scored, the goal will be disallowed.
69.4 Contact Outside the Goal Crease – If an attacking player initiates any contact with a goalkeeper, other than incidental contact, while the goalkeeper is outside his goal crease, and a goal is scored, the goal will be disallowed.

Kelly Hrudey said it best when he was talking about 97% of Talbot’s body being in the crease and 3% being outside. I reckon the part speaking to the “incidental contact” is where the refs decided that there was no interference on the play but come on. It’s pretty cut and dry, no? Perry has made a career of these kinds of plays and his reputation more than precedes him. He prevented Talbot from making that save.

I get it, the longer the games go, the more money it is for everyone (except for the players of course) but I truly hope that isn’t one of the mandates that has been passed on to the officials this post-season. I just have no idea why the linesmen would waive off that icing that late as it f*cked every Oiler on the ice.

Are they really trying to manage the games that closely?

There have been a couple of pink elephants in the room during this playoff series,

  1. Ryan Getzlaf
  2. Jordan Eberle

There’ve been more but I’m happy to see that Todd McLellan went ahead and addressed one of them, the other went ahead and picked up 4 pts last night.

Jordan Eberle was sent down to the 4th line after two HUGE giveaways that lead to a goal and in his stead, Anton Slepyshev brought energy, speed, creativity, and desire.

I enjoyed seeing Slepy in the top 6 but here’s the thing, I enjoyed the job Eberle did on the 4th line with two defensively capable veteran forwards in Pouliot and Desharnais as well. The shackles were removed and Ebs started to look like his old self which is something I don’t get.

Was it because he was told not to worry anymore, just go out there and do what you do best? Because he did just that. He was juking and jiving and twisting and turning Ducks defenders this way and that. He was also on the ice when Caggiula scored the game-tying tally.

Personally, if I were the coach, I’d give him one more chance… On the 4th line.

I know! There’ll be some that will cry that you can’t put a $6M player on the 4th line and that is true… In the regular season. But now that we’re in the post-season where there are no paychecks and everyone is on even footing, the best place to put Ebs is where he can be of the most service to the team and be the least risky.

Funny thing happened right as Ebs got demoted, I got a message from my source and he said,

“That’s it! Ebs is done. Chia is considering leaving him exposed for the expansion draft or dealing him for a RHD.”

Made me chuckle. I’ve scoffed at the idea when it was brought up before but I wonder what kind of deal Chia could swing using Ebs as the base of a deal and if NJ is interested in doing business again 🙂

Another thing I’d do if I were the coach is toss Leon Draisaitl up against Ryan Getzlaf. Big body on big body. The Oilers only have one centre that can physically go up against Getzlaf and that is Draisaitl. I’d probably wait until game 6 to employ this strategy but it’s one I’d have in my hip pocket for sure.

I don’t feel robbed like I probably should be because as I’ve said in the past, I’m just so happy there’s even a team in Edmonton because there was a time when the possibility of them moving was a reality. So, just to see them play is a blessing in itself for me. Adding McDavid, Draisaitl, Lucic, Talbot, and co. is just a huge cherry on top.

I hope more fans can share this feeling. Winning is fun, don’t get me wrong but having a team in Edmonton is even better.

Now, all of that being said, the Oilers did an excellent job of coming back (again) and are making this series a helluva lot more interesting than the others. It’s back to Anaheim where the Oilers are undefeated this offseason for a best of 3 and I’m putting my money on the Oilers.

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CategoriesBeer League Hero Edmonton Oilers NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs

Tags2017 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Anaheim Ducks Corey Perry Edmonton Oilers Jordan Eberle Ryan Getzlaf

Beer League Hero Written by:

I'm the Beer League Hero! I am from Camrose, Alberta but I make my home in Taipei City, Taiwan. I've been through the ups and downs and the highs and the Lowes, the Bonsignores and the McDavids, the Sathers and the Eakins but I'll never leave my Oilers, no matter what! They're with me until the end and then some. GO OILERS GO!