For the first time this season, the 2015-16 addition of the Edmonton Oilers were handed the challenge of facing on offence juggernaut on Friday night over at Rexall Place. Despite having won three straight games and showing moderate improvement on a nightly basis, Todd McLellan’s side was brought back down to earth by the visiting Washington Capitals.
While it was far from a perfect performance, the Edmonton Oilers still found a way to beat the Detroit Red Wings in regulation for the first time in a very long time on Wednesday night. On the strength of another solid outing by netminder Cam Talbot and some timely production from the trio of Connor McDavid, Benoit Pouliot and Nail Yakupov, the Oilers managed to sneak past the Wings with a 3-1 win over at Rexall Place.
It was a trio which first saw the light of day during the Edmonton Oilers second game of the season against the Nashville Predators and one Todd McLellan has turned to in every game since. While Connor McDavid, Benoit Pouliot, and Nail Yakupov didn’t necessarily hit the ground running, the three have combined to give the Oilers new bench boss another legitimate scoring option.
It is no secret the Edmonton Oilers still have a fair bit of work in front them before becoming one of the better teams in the NHL. However, with the likes of Jordan Eberle, Taylor Hall, Connor McDavid, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov now in place, it really is not a matter of if this team will become a force to be reckoned with but rather when.
After facing three of the better teams in the Western Conference during their first four games of the season, the Edmonton Oilers were finally thrown a lifeline of sorts on Saturday evening. While the Calgary Flames have owned the Battle of Alberta over the last number years and are coming off a fantastic 2014-15 campaign, they were exactly what the doctor ordered for Connor McDavid and company.
