11 AM MST The Scandinavium TV: Sportsnet (NHL-Network in USA) Radio: 630 CHED IT’S TIME We’re here. You’re here. They’re there. The Oilers and Devils kick off their 2018-19 regular seasons in Gothenburg, Sweden. The Oilers will look to begin a brand new season on a good note as they look to forget last year’s disappointing campaign. The Devils will look to start their season on the right foot after making the playoffs for the first time in six years. The Devils will have to do it without their starting netminder and their fifth leading scorer from 2017-18. Can Connor McDavid and the Oilers put two points in the win column to start the season? LINES Oilers starting lineup vs NJ in : RNH-McDavid-Rattie Lucic-Draisaitl-Yamamoto Khaira-Strome-Puljujarvi Rieder-Brodziak-Kassian Klefbom-Larsson Nurse-Benning Russell-Bouchard (NHL debut) Talbot — Jack Michaels (@EdmontonJack) October 6, 2018 THREE THINGS TO WATCH FOR THE BOUCH IS LOOSE: Evan Bouchard is set to make his NHL regular season debut tonight alongside Kris Rusell. Bouchard has logged plenty of ice time this preseason, and McLellan likes what he sees so far. He’ll no doubt have his hands full on that third pairing tonight. Good luck, young man. is set to make his NHL regular season debut tonight alongside Kris Rusell. Bouchard has logged plenty of ice time this preseason, and McLellan likes what he sees so far. He’ll no doubt have his hands full on that third pairing tonight. Good luck, young man. THE TY RATTIE EXPERIENCE: Ty Rattie cleaned up for himself this preseason on the top line. He had eleven points (4-7-11) in his first four games. Whoever is on the right side will need to click on all cylinders throughout the season. Is it time for Ty Rattie to break through? cleaned up for himself this preseason on the top line. He had eleven points (4-7-11) in his first four games. Whoever is on the right side will need to click on all cylinders throughout the season. Is it time for to break through? SANS SCHNEIDER: The Devils will be without their number one goaltender in Cory Schneider today. Keith Kinkaid (26-10-3, .913 SV% in 2017-18) will get the nod to start the season for New Jersey. Eddie Lack will backup Kinkaid. Can the Oilers disrupt Kinkaid early (and often)? #GOILERS<doc-sep>The Oilers waited 182 days to play a regular season game. They might have needed a few more days before hitting the ice today. The Devils got on the board with the first shot of the game. The Oilers responded, but would eventually find themselves down by two goals at the end of the second period, unable to recover. Another goal and an empty netter, and the Devils would cruise to a 5-2 victory over Edmonton in game one of the 2018-19 year. FIRST PERIOD Excitement! Wow, has it really been 182 games since the last regular season game? It’s going to be a blast getting back to regular season hockey. In an all-too-familiar feeling, the Devils scored on their first shot on goal. Kyle Palmieri makes it 1-0 Devils with 58 seconds having elapsed from the first period with Leon Draisaitl chasing him and Darnell Nurse looking a bit shell-shocked. It wasn’t a good day for Darnell Nurse or Matthew Benning overall. makes it 1-0 Devils with 58 seconds having elapsed from the first period with chasing him and looking a bit shell-shocked. It wasn’t a good day for or Matthew Benning overall. The Oilers pick up a power play when Ben Lovejoy takes a holding penalty on Ryan Strome . Milan Lucic (!!) scores a PPG to tie it up at 1. Alright, we’ll take that. The Oilers could really use a 40+ point season from the big man. You will not be shocked to learn that Connor McDavid sets this all up. The Oilers would get four cracks on the power play during the day, this is the only time that they would see any success in the form of a goal. (!!) scores a PPG to tie it up at 1. Alright, we’ll take that. The Oilers could really use a 40+ point season from the big man. You will not be shocked to learn that sets this all up. The Oilers would get four cracks on the power play during the day, this is the only time that they would see any success in the form of a goal. The ice begins to tilt in favour of the New Jersey Devils as the period comes to a close. Devils are getting much better chances in front of Talbot, and the Oilers are getting mighty good at taking shots from the point. Oilers and Devils are tied at the end of one. SECOND PERIOD Not a good period for the Oilers. Jesse Puljujarvi takes an early penalty and Kyle Palmieri scores his second of the game with two minutes gone from the period. Devils are now up 2-1, and it doesn’t get much better from here. takes an early penalty and Kyle Palmieri scores his second of the game with two minutes gone from the period. Devils are now up 2-1, and it doesn’t get much better from here. Just over a minute later, Travis Zajac makes it 3-1 Devils. Cam Talbot turns the puck over behind his net. Matthew Benning turns the puck over near the boards on Talbot’s right side. Miles Wood gets the puck to Travis Zajac who is alone in front of Talbot. Zajac puts on a show and tucks the puck between Talbot’s pads. It’s 3-1 New Jersey at this point. The Oilers are quite lucky it wasn’t 5-1 by the end of the period. makes it 3-1 Devils. Cam Talbot turns the puck over behind his net. Matthew Benning turns the puck over near the boards on Talbot’s right side. gets the puck to Travis Zajac who is alone in front of Talbot. Zajac puts on a show and tucks the puck between Talbot’s pads. It’s 3-1 New Jersey at this point. The Oilers are quite lucky it wasn’t 5-1 by the end of the period. The Devils are creating chances, the Oilers are hemmed in their own zone for significant portions of the period. The second period ends with the Devils up 3-1, and the Oilers have just one shot in the period. THIRD PERIOD Even though it hasn’t been a good game for the Oilers at this point, all they need really is just one goal to help turn things around. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it never comes. The Oilers can’t get it screwed on tight enough until the game is well out of grasp. I swear to God, I just saw this goal. Another turnover from Benning, same place as the last. Zajac’s got a body near him this time, but that’s all she wrote. It’s 4-1 Devils at this point, and you can begin to dim the lights. Oilers make it interesting with a goal midway through the third period by Leon Draisaitl . Leon pumps home his first of the year from Milan Lucic and Connor McDavid . Unfortunatley for the Oilers, it’s too little, too late at this point. . Leon pumps home his first of the year from and . Unfortunatley for the Oilers, it’s too little, too late at this point. The Oilers are awakened by Draisaitl ’s goal. They’re not going to score any more at this point however, as Stefan Noesen scores an empty netter for the Devils to tie a knot on this one 5-2. ETC<doc-sep>Share this Story: Cult of Hockey game grades as old, ugly habits doom Edmonton Oilers against New Jersey Devils Cult of Hockey game grades as old, ugly habits doom Edmonton Oilers against New Jersey Devils Photo by Bjorn Larsson Rosvall / AP Article content An early goal against on New Jersey’s first scoring chance. A power play goal against. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Cult of Hockey game grades as old, ugly habits doom Edmonton Oilers against New Jersey Devils Back to video A couple of goals against that goalie Cam Talbot might well have had. Trouble moving the puck almost all game, which contributed to numerous New Jersey scoring chances. Yes, indeed, old and ugly habits from the 2017-18 season bit the Edmonton Oilers hard in the team’s 5-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils in Sweden. In total, New Jersey had 12 Grade A chances to just eight for the Oilers. The Devils also scored on two Grade B shots from just outside the slot and got an empty-net goal. Connor McDavid, 8. McDavid is on pace to get 160 points and the Edmonton Oilers are on pace to get 0 points. Sound about right? McDavid looked to be a man possessed as he raced up ice to set up Milan Lucic for an early game tieing goal. McDavid made major contributions on six scoring chances, five of them at even strength, making him by far the most dangerous Oilers attacker. Back-checked hard this game and led a dangerous first line of Ty Rattie and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins that was unlucky not to score one or two goals at even strength. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, 7. Had one killer slot shot that could easily have got the Oilers back into the game in the second, not that the Oilers deserved to be back in this game. The McDavid line often buzzed the offensive zone, with all three players combining on smart passes and aggressive forechecking. Ty Rattie, 7. He does not have the pedigree of McDavid or RNH, but he fit right in on the top line, working hard, making smart plays and almost scoring when McDavid sent him in on a clear break. Led the team with four hits. A real bright spot on an otherwise dark day. Leon Draisaitl, 6. Was the main culprit on the first goal against, getting on the wrong side of his check in the defensive zone, only to have that man get the puck and score. But Draisaitl made up for that mistake with a fine one-timer blast of his own in the third period. Also set up Jesse Puljujarvi late in the second period and Kailer Yamamoto in the third for dangerous slot shots. Milan Lucic, 6. There were many good moments in Lucic’s game, in particular his fine snipe for one goal and strong cross-seam pass for another. But there were also some defensive zone missed assignments and turnovers. Kailer Yamamoto, 5. One dangerous slot shot in the third period Ryan Strome, 4. I hardly noticed him in his 15 minutes of ice time, which isn’t good enough for a forward. He won just three of nine faceoffs. Jesse Puljujarvi, 5. Got off his one good shot and made some strong plays on the puck but had a quiet game. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Jujhar Khaira, 4. Like Strome, a super quiet game. The third line failed to get rolling in any substantial manner. Kyle Brodziak, 2. Brought nothing to the attack and made a number of key mistakes on defence contributing to three Grade A chances against. My game notes include lines like “slow to puck,” “line hemmed in,” and “fails to clear.” A few more games like this and I’ll expect to see Khaira or Drake Caggiula at fourth line centre. Zack Kassian, 3. Might have helped out more to stop the goal scorer on the Devils’ power play goal. Was part of an ineffective fourth line. Tobias Rieder, 4. Like Strome, like Khaira, he was quiet out there, not too much bad, but not anything really good. Of course, that’s better than the others on the fourth line. Oscar Klefbom, 6. On the plus side, he and Larsson moved the puck fairly well, but they also had a number of iffy moments on defence, Klefbom more than Larsson. Notably Klefbom was out of position on a two-on-one leading to a dangerous slot shot by Taylor Hall. Adam Larsson, 6. He didn’t move the puck as well as Klefbom, but defended better. Had a few strong moments in terms of his physical play. He got deked out on a dangerous Devils chance early in the first. Matt Benning, 2. Again and again he lost battles, turned over the puck and missed assignments that resulted in scoring chances against the Oilers. He and Nurse struggled to move the puck all night. He looked in over his head in a Top 4 role and earned his -3 goals on the night, just as Nurse did. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Darnell Nurse, 3. Had trouble making passes all night. Too often threw the puck off the boards, not on a teammate’s stick. Out of position and lost a battle on the first goal against, sharing the blame. Evan Bouchard, 5. Had a quiet night, which is good for a d-man, meaning he wasn’t caught out too often in his own zone. Passed the puck well in 14 minutes of play. Kris Russell, 6. Maybe screened the goalie on the Devils’ power play goal but otherwise was solid in limited playing time. If Benning doesn’t step up fast, Plan B should be to quickly go to Russell in the Top 4. Cam Talbot, 3.<doc-sep>Share this Story: The morning after the night before for the Edmonton Oilers: 9 Things The morning after the night before for the Edmonton Oilers: 9 Things Photo by Bjorn Larsson Rosvall / AP Article content The Edmonton Oilers desperately need to get off on the right foot this season. Yesterday was not that. A decisive 5-2 loss to the Devils in Sweden. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or The morning after the night before for the Edmonton Oilers: 9 Things Back to video If you want a detailed breakdown of how things, well…broke down on Saturday? David Staples’ Cult of Hockey Game Grades, including his excellent detailed Grade “A” scoring chances for and against, are here. Having slept on that game, though, here are my broader thoughts on how the loss will settle around this team, moving forward. 9 Things 9. Kailer Yamamoto needs more ego. Too often I see him defer to more experienced players and it ends up costing him and the team opportunities. I saw self-confidence serve him very well, in an effort to make the team. But a wise man once said: It is far easier to achieve success than it is to maintain it. 8. I had no real problem with Jesse Puljujarvi’s game yesterday. But we should all agree that there were a couple chances handed to Jesse that he did not bury. One of the areas where Puljujarvi needs to grow is in intensity. Goal scorers really bear down when those “gimmes” come their way. At least one of those needed to go in. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content 7. I felt the best of the 3 young right wingers in this game was Ty Rattie. Over and over again I saw smart little decisions being made. Rattie seems to understand exactly who he is and generally speaking stays within himself. The 2 shots, the 4 hits? The fact that he stripped 2 pucks and turned them into opportunities? Suggests “arrows up”. 6. Too many things went wrong on Saturday to blame that loss on any one player. Having said that, Cam Talbot did not deliver the performance we had seen all the way through training camp. His giveaway behind the net was a communication error that he at least shares fault on. And I felt Talbot should have had the 2-1. Yes, the puck glanced off Kris Russell. But that’s a save you have to get. 5. Evan Bouchard acquitted himself quite well in his NHL debut. What stood out for me in his game the most? Bouchard’s calmness with the puck. A mistake rookie D-men often make is not realizing how much time they actually have and throwing the puck away too quickly and carelessly. And defensively? Buchard was fairly quiet, which is a good sign for a player of his maturity. 4. Anyone reading this space on a regular basis will know that I have advocated for the club to acquire another “real” NHL defenceman. And I felt that last night’s performance by this group of D put a bold-face on that observation. I saw a “hole in the donut”: The top pairing more or less held it’s own. Kris Russell and Bouchard were “fine” on the 3rd pairing. But what if Matt Benning is actually a good 3rd pairing D-man, and Russell is playing exactly where he should be, as a “5”? Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content 3. I see some frustrated fans too quick to attack Todd McLellan and staff on line combos. A knock on Todd from last season (which I think is actually fair) was that he shuffled the deck too often. But what we saw from McLellan yesterday was (twice) effectively using time-outs to double-shift Connor McDavid. I think we can all agree that Connor can handle the extra work. Every NHL coach, given the opportunity, would surely consider doing the exact same thing. 2. If the club gets that from Milan Lucic more often than not? Most of the narrative over Lucic from last season will slowly melt away. The big man was one of the few forwards that played well Saturday. The chance he buried on the power play veered wide countless times in the back-half of last season. And there were no signs of past hesitancy in the one-touch pass that set up Draisaitl for Leon’s goal. Both were “Top 6 plays”. And he was effective on the fore-check. I felt Lucic was the best Oilers forward not named “McDavid”. 1. The Darnell Nurse–Matt Benning pairing struggled tremendously. I thought that Matt Benning in particular was poor. But how do you address that? I could submit that last season, the coaching staff reacted poorly to Benning’s slow start and that the resulting loss of confidence haunted the kid all season. No doubt a bunch of fans would like Benning seated in the press box or demoted after that performance. But is that really the right thing to do? Or, unlike last season, should they continue to show confidence in Benning and give him some room to rebound? I wonder what Trent Yawney thinks? Y’know…the fresh eyes, from last season. There is no shortage of work to be done between now and the Boston game. No doubt all involved wish there was less time between now and then. Most players, coaches and fans would sooner climb right back onto the horse. Especially after being bucked off, like they were on Saturday. Find me on Twitter @KurtLeavins Recently, at The Cult… STAPLES: Oilers Game Grades from a 5-2 loss in Sweden LEAVINS: The pressure is on, starting now STAPLES: Talbot climbs the Power Rankings Share this article in your social network Latest National Stories Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<doc-sep>
Share this Story: Game Day #1 - Edmonton Oilers vs. New Jersey Devils: The pressure is on, starting now Game Day #1 - Edmonton Oilers vs. New Jersey Devils: The pressure is on, starting now Photo by Jason Franson / CP Article content Game Day #1: Edmonton Oilers versus New Jersey Devils (in Gothenburg, Sweden) We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Game Day #1 - Edmonton Oilers vs. New Jersey Devils: The pressure is on, starting now Back to video For the beleaguered Edmonton Oilers and their long-suffering fans, the long journey back from last season’s derailment begins with a single game, today in Gothenburg, Sweden. It’s a new year. 2017-18 is thankfully in the rear view mirror. There is renewed hope and optimism as well as a steely resolve from the club’s best player. Whether or not Connor McDavid and company have it within them to turn around this franchise’s fortunes very much remains to be seen. But after an encouraging pre-season for the Oilers, tonight is their first real road test. There are so many questions to be answered it is difficult to know where to begin: -Is it in Goal, where a tremendous amount of weight has been placed on the shoulders of Cam Talbot? Will we see 42-22-2.39-.919 Cam Talbot of 2016-17? Or the 31-31-3.02-.908 edition from last season? At 31 and playing for a contract, there is no time like the present. And if Talbot fails, Mikko Koskinen, with all of 4 games of NHL experience, waits in the wings. Article content -Is it on Defence, where unlike last season Oscar Klefbom enters this campaign 100% healthy? The Oilers defacto #1 D-man will be counted on to log 22-plus minutes per night as well as to anchor a Power Play that finished dead last in the league in 2017-18 (14.8%). Yeah…no pressure. Oh, and the best 2 puck movers behind him are 18-year old Evan Bouchard and 21-year old Ethan Bear. -Is it a trio of green-as-grass NHL right wingers who are being called upon to fill 3 of the top 4 spots on the starboard-side? Jesse Puljujarvi (93 NHL games), Ty Rattie (49) and Kailer Yamamoto (9) all had positive exhibition seasons. But it is imperative that at least one of them has a break-out season. Yet none of the 3 have shown that they are poised to do so. Yet. And a failure to do so will almost certainly see a return of Leon Draisaitl to McDavid’s flank. Which throws everything else topsy-turvy. -The Oilers chose to keep Todd McLellan on the bench for yet another season despite last year’s meltdown. Instead of replacing him, the club instead brought in 3 new assistants for McLellan to work with. With relatively little roster turnover, Trent Yawney, Emanuel Vivieros and Glen Gulutzan will be expected to help Todd extract a lot more out of the players that they do have. Is that reasonable? Is it do-able? A league-worst Power Play and a home-ice-worst Penalty Kill await their voodoo. -And finally, all eyes and even more pressure still on Connor McDavid. It seems difficult to ask even more than what this player has already delivered in his young but stunning NHL career: 209-87-169-256, 2 Art Ross Trophies, a Hart Trophy and a couple Ted Lindsay’s. This from a kid who is all of 21 years old and team Captain. Can he maintain the chemistry he flashed with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins last Spring? Can he stay healthy? Can he elevate his game even further than he already has? Dare to dream. Article content The great ones do. But no one player has ever carried a team to promised land all on their own. The supporting cast has to at least carry its own weight. And after last season, there is a lot of baggage in Edmonton to lug around. Oilers Projected Lines & Pairings Talbot Nugent-Hopkins – McDavid – Rattie Klefbom – Larsson Lucic – Draisaitl – Yamamoto Nurse – Benning Khaira – Strome – Puljujarvi Russell – Bouchard Rieder – Brodziak – Kassian Scratches: Garrison, Chiasson, Caggiula, Koskinen (back-up) Short Shifts: Oilers: There are only 3 NHL clubs that Connor McDavid had not scored a goal against and the Devils are one of them. But McDavid does have 8 assists in 5 games played against New Jersey. Evan Bouchard will play his 1st career NHL game today.