'More Oiler-like': Edmonton snaps slump with much-improved effort

WASHINGTON — Collecting points, or collecting confidence? 

We’re not sure which is more important for the Edmonton Oilers these days, so on a Friday afternoon in Washington, they simply did both. 

“More Oiler-like,” began Zach Hyman, who had a pair of assists on the best game this Oilers team has played all season. “Great special teams, great PK, great power play. Great saves that kept us in it early. Great even-strength play … 

“It’s the kind of game that you look up to and say ‘’Yes. This is how we should play.’”

The Oilers closed out a sloppy road trip with a commanding performance in D.C., the better team from the opening puck drop to the final horn in a decisive — and much-needed — 5-0 win over the Washington Capitals. 

If you didn’t know how badly Edmonton has struggled this season, you’d swear they’ve done this 10 times already in 2023-24.   

“That’s how it felt,” Hyman said. “It's a lot more fun as a player when it comes to games like that. We’ve got to do it more often.” 

Connor McDavid (four assists) had his first three-point game of the season in Game 19 — after 22 three-point nights a season ago. 

Playing hurt for much of the past three weeks, his jump is returning. McDavid’s explosiveness and the quickest first two steps in the sport were on display for a full 60 minutes, not just for a period as it’s been at times this season. 

Leon Draisaitl scored his seventh and eighth, both on a power play that — for the first time in almost a quarter of a season — resembled the unit that set the all-time record for success a season ago. It went three-for-four, and afterwards, Draisaitl was all smiles. 

“We have a lot of guys in here that care a lot. And I think sometimes it's a little misunderstood towards the outside. But we care, and we want to win,” said Draisaitl, part of a leadership group with McDavid, Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins that romped to a 12-point night. 

“Have there been times this year where it hasn't gone our way as a leadership group? Yes, of course. Have we been at our best all year? Absolutely not,” Draisaitl continued. “But there’s a lot of pride in this room. This was a good start.” 

Edmonton opened the road trip by blowing a pair of 2-0 first-period leads in Tampa and Florida. There may never have been a more dedicated team when it came to protecting a 2-0 lead this time around, nor a team playing with more desperation in Game 19 of its season. 

Wins have been few for the 6-12-1 Oilers, and sitting 10 points back of the last wild-card spot on American Thanksgiving, there is no more time for treading water in the Western Conference. 

This effort, a solid defensive performance with commensurate goaltending from Stuart Skinner, was exactly what was required. The Oilers outshot Washington 21-6 in the opening period and 35-25 on the afternoon, as Skinner collected the Oilers’ first shutout of the season and third of his career. 

“Any time you can get a full 60 minutes it's means you're doing things right for the whole game, obviously," he said. "That's how you win games,. so it's a big one for us for sure.” 

Call them power-play dependent if you will, but the Oilers are built to draw penalties at even strength with their skill and speed, then finish you on the ensuing man advantage. It’s a formula that somehow has not added up yet this season. 

In Washington, the dominant unit returned, pressing and pressing until the Caps defenders simply ran out of coverage. 

“It's getting the puck back, it's working,” said Hyman. “Everybody thinks our power play is sexy, but it's sexy because we work. It’s sexy because we go get the puck. It's all work based.” 

“You could see a lot of frustration on the power play,” added head coach Kris Knoblauch. “Getting three power-play goals, and the passes and the plays they were making, it looks like they're kind of out of that funk. 

“(But) most importantly with our team play is how well we checked and the chances that we gave up tonight. There's going to be breakdowns, there's going to be chances that we give up and we need our goaltending to make some big saves … 

“It wasn't perfect, but it was a lot more of what we want -- or what we need.” 

The Oilers head home now with the intent of making this last. They had a three-game winning streak before this road trip began, and cancelled it out with three straight losses. 

But this game, and the way it was won, might just be the tonic they seek. 

“It's exciting. Exciting to get going,” Hyman said. “That's the feeling, and that's how you build your swagger and confidence — through continuously doing it well and then seeing results. 

“Tonight, we saw some results.”