For a team that was missing its #1 defenceman and, oh yeah, its #1 goalie, Edmonton Oilers were more than up to the challenge on Saturday night. After a bit of a shaky start, the Oilers exploded for four goals in the back half of the first period and cruised from there to a 5-2 win over Chicago Blackhawks.
Once again it was Edmonton’s elite special teams units that led the charge. The powerplay made it look easy in converting a 5-on-3, but it was the penalty kill unit that stole the show. Not only did they kill off all three Chicago powerplays, the Oilers connected for a pair of shorthanded goals in the same game for the first time since 2010.
Through 17 games, the powerplay is now a collective 21 for, 0 against, while the penalty kill is 3 for, 6 against. That’s a net +24/-6 = +18 which is off the charts good.
The home team held a 33-30 edge on the shot clock but a more convincing 18-10 bulge in Grade A shots as tabulated by David Staples and myself here at the Cult of Hockey.
#2 Duncan Keith, 7. Wily veteran found himself in a feature role just as his old friends from Chicago came calling. He led all players on both sides with 25:06 in ice time, within a few ticks of his career average during his 16 years in the Windy City but about 5 minutes more than he’s been getting in his new home. He and his new partner Bouchard got burned for one ten-bell look in the opening seconds of the game but settled down nicely thereafter. 3 shots on net, 2 blocks, 2 takeaways.
#5 Cody Ceci, 7. Was assigned to a partnership with the NHL debutant Broberg and delivered 22 minutes of reliable two-way hockey. Was particularly solid behind his own blueline. 1 shot, 3 blocks, 1 hit.
#6 Kris Russell, 6. Got the job done on a third pairing that sawed off 0-0 on the night. Had one tough sequence in which he was beaten for 2 good shots in rapid succession but Skinner had the answers. 2 shots, 2 blocks, 2 hits, and 2 good minutes on the penalty kill.
#8 Kyle Turris, 5. Delivered 6 quiet minutes on a little-used but fairly effective fourth line.
#13 Jesse Puljujarvi, 5. A little snakebitten this last while, and was again on Saturday when he was flat out robbed by Kevin Lankinen after a great McDavid feed on a 3-on-1 rush. Did have a couple of defensive hiccups but the puck was generally moving north on his watch. 3 shots, 2 blocks, 2 hits. Took a penalty and celebrated an Oilers goal from the sin bin.
#16 Tyler Benson, 5. With a team-low 5:14 of ice time didn’t play enough to really move the needle, but he had his moments all the same. Made a fine play just inside his own line to recover a loose puck after Russell’s shot block, then headman it to Kassian for a partial breakaway. Also stirred things up himself a couple of times. Drew three opponents including the goalie into a scrum after banging away at a loose puck in the blue paint and continuing to bang away even after it wasn’t loose. Has recognized the necessity to play with some edge in his current NHL role and is doing just that.
#18 Zach Hyman, 6. Did some effective work in Chicago territory, and keyed the first goal when his deflection of a point shot created an uncontrolled rebound which McDavid cashed. Did take 2 of Edmonton’s 3 penalties so spent relatively little time on the PK unit, fortunately his teammates had his back and not only killed them off but even got one themselves.
#22 Tyson Barrie, 6. Pounded home his third goal of the season on the 5-on-3, sneaking into the high slot and converting Draisaitl’s feed with a hard one-timer. Handled the puck well and took care of business in his own end of the ice, most notably when he boxed out giant Kirby Dach.
#25 Darnell Nurse, no grade. His name is embedded in the boiler plate, such a constant he has been on the Edmonton blueline. His consecutive games streak that dated back to 2016-17 ended at 326 when he was unable to go due to a busted finger, quite a feat for a defender who plays such an active game for so many minutes.
#29 Leon Draisaitl, 7. Came out hard and steamrolled Connor Murphy on his first shift of the night. His line was chasing the game a little at even strength but he more than made up for it on special teams. Earned a primary assist on the powerplay when he sold Lankinen on his patented one-timer but crossed up the aggressive keeper by instead teeing up Barrie for a blast into the wide open net. Then scored himself on the penalty kill, speeding on to Bouchard’s long area pass and wiring a perfect shot past Lankinen, off the post and in to finally salt the game away in the 57th minute. Made a superb pass to Kassian which forced another great stop by Lankinen. In on 5 Grade A shots for, 0 against. A team high 6 shot attempts and a respectable 10/18=56% on the dot.
#37 Warren Foegele, 8. One of the more noticeably Oilers on a highly effective third line. In his 11 minutes at even strength Edmonton otushot Chicago 9-3 and dominated the scoring chance metrics as well. Foegele himself was directly involved in 4 Grade A shots by the Oilers, 0 against. Made a very nice pass to McLeod for the 4-0 goal and deservedly received the primary assist on the play. Hammered 4 shots on goal himself including a couple from very close range. Skated miles and provided a strong physical presence as well. Likely his best game as an Oiler to this early point.
#44 Zack Kassian, 7. An excellent bookend for Foegele, he too fired 4 shots on net and landed 4 hits to lead the Oilers in both departments. Couldn’t find the scoresheet but not for want of trying, pounding 3 Grade A shots on net. Now 9 games without a point but that won’t last much longer based on this fine showing. Made a good defensive play to break up a Chicago cycle and clear the Oilers zone.
#56 Kailer Yamamoto, 7. Did his best work on the penalty kill, where he delivered 3 solid minutes. Scored his first career shorthanded goal when he jumped on a loose puck in the middle of the Chicago zone and quickly ripped a high shot that found the top corner. Made a couple of fine steals, a couple of nice dangles and handled the puck with confidence. A couple of coverage issues on the defensive side, but nothing that proved costly.
#70 Colton Sceviour, 7. His second game as an emergency fill-in at the centre position and once again he delivered the goods, including on the faceoff dot where he was a perfect 3/3=100%. Held his own for 5+ even-strength minutes on a line between Benson and Turris, but like a few of his teammates his best work came on the penalty kill, where he led all forwards with 3:04 of ice time. After previously seeing his first point as an Oiler taken off the board due to an official scoring change, he finally broke the ice on a play in which he was initially uncredited, then correctly added in after it was determined his dogged shadowing of Seth Jones resulted in a deflection off his skate and directly to Yamamoto.
#71 Ryan McLeod, 6. Scored his second NHL goal with a pretty deke and finish off a fine Foegele feed. Skated well on an effective third line which largely controlled play. Docked a full point, however, for his ill-advised pass back to the point at the end of an Oilers powerplay which got tipped enroute to its destination, leading to a fast break 2-on-0 the other way and the goal that cut Edmonton’s lead to 4-2 with 11 minutes left. Call it a rookie mistake, not unexpected given McLeod is in fact a rookie. But one who is showing excellent progress these past couple of weeks. 5/10=50% on the dot.
#74 Stuart Skinner, 8. Set the tone in the opening seconds when he robbed Kane from close range, then made a second outstanding stop of the same Chicago star from the slot just 4 minutes later. Those huge early stops enabled the Oilers to open the scoring for the first time in 8 long games, and ultimately to stretch it out to a 4-0 lead. Otherwise rock solid, with zero chance on either goal — an aerial deflection just inside the post, and a perfectly-executed 2-on-0 breakaway that was finished by sniper Alex DeBrincat. 30 shots, 28 saves, .933 save percentage.
#75 Evan Bouchard, 6. High-event night that saw him involved in 9 Grade A shots, 5 at the good end of the ice. 4 of those resulted in goals: Bouchard earned assists on McDavid’s tally with a good low shot that Hyman was able to tip on its way in, and on Draisaitl’s when he backed a superb pass off the wall and into the lane of the fast-charging German. In between times, however, he was victimized on both Chicago tallies, failing to prevent Dach’s tip on the first and turning the puck over at the offensive blueline on the second. In fairness he was left on an island on the latter after McLeod sent a grenade his way. Also rang a rocket off the crossbar. Led all Oilers with 6 shot attempts and 3 giveaways, which kind of encapsulates his night’s work.
#86 Philip Broberg, 7. The standard +1 simply for playing his first NHL game, a fantastic accomplishment especially at the tender age of 20. Comported himself well throughout his 14:24 of action. Drew an early penalty that led to a powerplay goal. Then earned his first NHL point by making a quick, smart pass down the wall to Foegele, setting the stage for McLeod’s goal. Burned once at the defensive end by the crafty Kane but was saved by the bell when Kane rang the post. One of the things he seems to have learned in the AHL is to be less of a hit magnet than he was in preseason, and he demonstrated that on a third period sortie when a Hawk seemingly had him in the trolley tracks.
#93 Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, 5. Quiet game at even strength. Struggled to contain Blackhawk shots from the point, allowing no fewer than 4 that would result in dangerous chances, including the one that Dach tipped home late in the first. Did however make a fine defensive stop on Jonathan Toews to bust up an odd-man rush. His best moments came on the penalty kill, where he contributed 2 effective minutes to the cause. 2 shots, 2 blocks.
#97 Connor McDavid, 8. Another splendid game from the captain, who chipped in a goal and an assist early to provide his team a multi-goal lead that they never did relinquish. Made 1 early mistake on a Chicago scoring chance, otherwise was only involved at the good end where he contributed to 7 Grade A looks, the most of any Oiler. Broke his stick on a d-zone faceoff but responded by blocking a pass with his body, then decking the nearest Chicagoan before heading to the bench for a new twig. 2 shots, 1 hit, 3 giveaways, 2 takeaways, and 8/14=57% in the faceoff circle. The biggest surprise? He drew not 1, not 2, but 3 (THREE!!) penalties.
STAPLES: Oilers need these guys to step up in Nurse’s absence
STAPLES: Oilers recall Philip Broberg
COOPER: Game grades in huge win over Jets
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GUADALAJARA, Mexico – Canada’s Marina Stakusic fell 6-4, 6-3 to Poland’s Magdalena Frech in the quarterfinals of the Guadalajara Open tennis tournament on Friday.
The 19-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., won 61 per cent of her first-serve points and broke on just one of her six opportunities.
Stakusic had upset top-seeded Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (0) on Thursday night to advance.
In the opening round, Stakusic defeated Slovakia’s Anna Karolína Schmiedlová 6-2, 6-4 on Tuesday.
The fifth-seeded Frech won 62 per cent of her first-serve points and converted on three of her nine break point opportunities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
TORONTO – Alejandro Kirk’s long single with the bases loaded provided the Toronto Blue Jays with a walk-off 4-3 win in the 11th inning of their series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.
With the Cardinals outfield in, Kirk drove a shot off the base of the left-field wall to give the Blue Jays (70-78) their fourth win in 11 outings and halt the Cardinals’ (74-73) two-game win streak before 30,380 at Rogers Centre.
Kirk enjoyed a two-hit, two-RBI outing.
Erik Swanson (2-2) pitched a perfect 11th inning for the win, while Cardinals reliever Ryan Fernandez (1-5) took the loss.
Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman enjoyed a seven-inning, 104-pitch outing. He surrendered his two runs on nine hits and two walks and fanned only two Cardinals.
He gave way to reliever Genesis Cabrera, who gave up a one-out homer to Thomas Saggese, his first in 2024, that tied the game in the eighth.
The Cardinals started swiftly with four straight singles to open the game. But they exited the first inning with only two runs on an RBI single to centre from Nolan Arendao and a fielder’s choice from Saggese.
Gausman required 28 pitches to escape the first inning but settled down to allow his teammates to snatch the lead in the fourth.
He also deftly pitched out of threats from the visitors in the fifth, sixth and seventh thanks to some solid defence, including Will Wagner’s diving stop, which led to a double play to end the fifth inning.
George Springer led off with a walk and stole second base. He advanced to third on Nathan Lukes’s single and scored when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. knocked in his 95th run with a double off the left-field wall.
Lukes scored on a sacrifice fly to left field from Spencer Horwitz. Guerrero touched home on Kirk’s two-out single to right.
In the ninth, Guerrero made a critical diving catch on an Arenado grounder to throw out the Cardinals’ infielder, with reliever Tommy Nance covering first. The defensive gem ended the inning with a runner on second base.
St. Louis starter Erick Fedde faced the minimum night batters in the first three innings thanks to a pair of double plays. He lasted five innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk with three strikeouts.
ON DECK
Toronto ace Jose Berrios (15-9) will start the second of the three-game series on Saturday. He has a six-game win streak.
The Cardinals will counter with righty Kyle Gibson (8-6).
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
CALGARY – Mired in their first four-game losing skid in 20 years, the Calgary Stampeders are going back to Jake Maier at quarterback on Saturday after he was benched for a game.
It won’t be an easy assignment.
Visiting McMahon Stadium are the Eastern Conference-leading Montreal Alouettes (10-2) who own the CFL’s best record. The Stampeders (4-8) have fallen to last in the Western Conference.
“Six games is plenty of time, but also it is just six games,” said Maier. “We’ve got to be able to get on the right track.”
Calgary is in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2004.
“I do still believe in this team,” said Stampeders’ head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson. “I want to see improvement, though. I want to see guys on a weekly basis elevating their game, and we haven’t been doing that.”
Maier is one of the guys under the microscope. Two weeks ago, the second-year starter threw four interceptions in a 35-20 home loss to the Edmonton Elks.
After his replacement, rookie Logan Bonner, threw five picks in last week’s 37-16 loss to the Elks in Edmonton, the football is back in Maier’s hands.
“Any time you fail or something doesn’t go your way in life, does it stink in the moment? Yeah. But then the days go on and you learn things about yourself and you learn how to prepare a little bit better,” said Maier. “It makes you mentally tougher.”
Dickenson wants to see his quarterback making better decisions with the football.
“Things are going to happen, interceptions will happen, but try to take calculated risks, rather than just putting the ball up there and hoping that we catch it,” said Dickenson.
A former quarterback himself, he knows the importance of that vital position.
“You cannot win without good quarterback play,” Dickenson said. “You’ve got to be able to make some plays — off-schedule plays, move-around plays, plays that break down, plays that aren’t designed perfectly, but somehow you found the right guy, and then those big throws where you’re taking that hit.”
But it’s going to take a team effort, and that includes the club’s receiving corp.
“We always have to band together because we need everything to go right for our receivers to get the ball,” said Nik Lewis, the Stampeders’ receivers coach. “The running back has to pick up the blitz, the o-line has to block, the quarterback has to make the right reads, and then give us a catchable ball.”
Lewis brings a unique perspective to this season’s frustrations as he was a 22-year-old rookie in Calgary in 2004 when the Stamps went 4-14 under coach Matt Dunigan. They turned it around the next season and haven’t missed the playoffs since.”
“Thinking back and just looking at it, there’s just got to be an ultimate belief that you can get it done. Look at Montreal, they were 6-7 last year and they’ve gone 18-2 since then,” said Lewis.
Montreal is also looking to rebound from a 37-23 loss to the B.C. Lions last week. But for head coach Jason Maas, he says his team’s mindset doesn’t change, regardless of what happened the previous week.
“Last year when we went through a four-game losing streak, you couldn’t tell if we were on a four-game winning streak or a four-game losing streak by the way the guys were in the building, the way we prepared, the type of work ethic we have,” said Maas. “All our standards are set, so that’s all we focus on.”
While they may have already clinched a playoff spot, Alouettes’ quarterback Cody Fajardo says this closing stretch remains critical because they want to finish the season strong, just like last year when they won their final five regular-season games before ultimately winning the Grey Cup.
“It doesn’t matter about what you do at the beginning of the year,” said Fajardo. “All that matters is how you end the year and how well you’re playing going into the playoffs so that’s what these games are about.”
The Alouettes’ are kicking off a three-game road stretch, one Fajardo looks forward to.
“You understand what kind of team you have when you play on the road because it’s us versus the world mentality and you can feel everybody against you,” said Fajardo. “Plus, I always tend to find more joy in silencing thousands of people than bringing thousands of people to their feet.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
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