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Tuesday, November 5, 2024

Player grades: Edmonton Oilers Columbus Blue Jackets

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All the air went out of the Edmonton Oilers after Connor McDavid was knocked out of Monday night’s game on his first shift.

The Columbus Blue Jackets quickly got up by three goals in the first. The rest of the game was uneventful, CBJ eventually winning 6-1.

As for McDavid, at the end of second period, Bob Stauffer of Oilers Now reported: “We don’t know what it is yet… I have no idea what is the prognosis at this stage. I don’t know if anybody does. It’s obviously quite concerning.”

Stauffer concluded: “We have no idea where it’s at right now.”

McDavid will be sent home to Edmonton for evaluation while the rest of the team moves on to play in Nashville, Oilers Kris Knoblauch said.

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As for the game, Edmonton had 12 Grade A shots compared to 13 for CBJ, with the subset of most dangerous 5-alarm shots six each for both teams.

Cult of Hockey game grades player grades

Connor McDavid. Incomplete. He got blatantly tripped by Zach Werenski on the first shift. Not a dirty play, as it looked like Werenski was going for the puck. But no penalty and to add injury to insult, it took McDavid out of the game. He looked OK-ish coming off the ice. We shall see. Fingers crossed. Contributions/mistakes on Grade A shots (GAS): Even Strength +0/-0; Special Teams 0/0

Zach Hyman 7. Edmonton’s best player. He tried singlehandedly to keep the Oil in the game, but to no avail. He knocked down an errant clearance and plowed into the slot for Edmonton’s first Grade A, then was sent in by RNH for another, then barged in again for a third good shot, but no goals. He drew a penalty late in the first to create a 2-man advantage. He threw a hard hit on Kirill Marchenko early in the third, a rare sign of Oilers life. GAS: ES +4/-0; ST 0/0

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, 3. Great lofted pass to Hyman for an early break-in. but otherwise nothing to report. More is needed. GAS: ES +1/-0; ST 1/1

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Leon Draisaitl, 3. Super quiet game but he did launch his Executioner’s Shot after a CBJ turnover  in the third. Big Leon will be needed to step up and lead now. He’s done it before, can do it again. GAS: ES +1/-1; ST 2/0

Viktor Arvidsson, 3. He lost an edge and took out Elvis Merzlikins for a penalty early in the first, leading to CBJ’s first goal. He released on his check on the fourth CBJ goal, part of the general poor play on that one. GAS: ES +0/-1; ST 0/0

Vasili Podkolzin, 5. He made a great pass on the PK to send in Brown on a breakaway. Some good hustle plays but was sleepy on CBJ’s fifth goal, where he allowed the shooter to shoot. GAS: ES +1/-1; ST 1/0

Jeff Skinner, 4. Had a few hard outside shots on net. Otherwise uneventful game. GAS: ES +1/-0; ST 0/0

Adam Henrique, 3. Quiet, uneventful game other than one picked off pass and solid slot shot in the third. Not good enough for a forward. GAS: ES +1/-0; ST 0/0

Connor Brown, 4. Early in the second he won the puck then worked a give-and-go with Podkolzin for a break-in short-handed shot but could not score. It was Edmonton’s last real hope of getting into the game. As with others, more needed from Brown just now. GAS: ES +0/-0; ST 1/0

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Mattias Janmark, 4. Another forward with a a quiet, uneventful game, save for a solid screen on Ekholm’s goal. GAS: ES +1/-1; ST 1/0

Derek Ryan, 2. Not his night, not even close. Every mistake he made ended up in Edmonton’s net. A bit slow to the point on the slot-pass on Sean Monahan’s early goal. Got trapped out of position and behind the net on Adam Fantilli’s first period goal. In the second he lost the puck behind the net, kicking off the Sequence of Pain on the fourth CBJ goal. He did get a bit back, winning a board battle to set up Perry’s 5-alarm power move to the net. Allowed the pass into the high slot on the sixth CBJ goal. GAS: ES +1/-3; ST 0/2

Corey Perry, 4. He kicked off the Sequence of Pain on the second CBJ goal, losing a race for the puck in the n-zone. He made a strong power move to the net in the second, almost scoring. GAS: ES +2/-1; ST 1/0

Evan Bouchard, 3. Tough one for Bouch. He muffed on the puck at centre ice, leading to a first period break-in for Justin Danforth. He screened Skinner on CBJ’s third, a Californian. He blasted a bomb off the crossbar on Edmonton’s 5-on-3. Allowed the slot pass on the fifth CBJ goal. GAS: ES +0/-4; ST 2/0

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Mattias Ekholm, 4. A rare bad night. Deked out on the PK by an onrushing Chinakov early on. Next he allowed the pass out on Fanitlli’s goal. He allowed the pass out on the fifth CBJ goal. He did fire in a late goal on the power play to break the shut-out. GAS: ES +0/-2; ST 2/1

Darnell Nurse, 4. Two weak games in a row. He failed to cut out the shot-pass on CBJ’s first goal. He gave away the puck at the opposition blueline leading to a late CBJ break-in. GAS: ES +0/-2; ST 1/1

Troy Stecher, 6. Quiet, uneventful game, but that’s OK for a d-man. Some good hustle plays now and then. GAS: ES +0/-0; ST 0/0

Ty Emberson, 3. High event game, some good, plenty not good. He got outworked in front of the net on the fourth CBJ goal, though he was double-teamed. He lost a battle at the side of the net on the sixth CBJ goal. GAS: ES +2/-4; ST 0/0

Brett Kulak, 4. Allowed the outside shot on the sixth goal. GAS: ES +0/-2; ST 0/0

Stuart Skinner, 3. Not his best. Six goals against on 24 shots  Huge stop on Yegor Chinakov’s break-in shot early on, then little chance on Monahan’s slot tip. Solid save on Danforth’s break-in. A save on Fantilli’s goal would have been nice, but a tough shot. Double screen on the third goal, including Evan Bouchard in the way. Beat for two late goals when the game had lost all meaning.

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