The Edmonton Oilers have been one of the hottest teams in the NHL over the past five and a half weeks. Now, with the holiday break in the rearview mirror, they’ll look to keep it going when they visit the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday.
Back on Nov. 18, the Oilers were 9-8-2 after a 3-0 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. They rebounded the next night with a 5-2 win against the host Ottawa Senators, spurring their current 12-3-0 stretch. Most recently, they’ve won three in a row, including a 3-1 home victory against the Senators on Sunday.
“I think we’re in a good spot,” goalie Stuart Skinner said after that contest. “We’re finding ways to win games. We don’t want to lose two in a row, and we’ve been doing a pretty good job of that lately. I think the way we’ve been playing in all ends of the ice has been pretty consistent.”
Edmonton scored 2.63 goals per game and allowed 3.16 goals through the first five weeks of the season. They’ve done a 180-degree flip, averaging 4.07 goals for while limiting opponents to an average of 2.33 from Nov. 19 and on. Special teams have also improved, with the power play going from 16.3 percent efficiency to 28.2 percent and the penalty kill from a 67.4 percent success rate up to 86.7 percent.
A resurgent Zach Hyman has helped contribute to the Oilers’ success. The 32-year-old has seven goals in a six-game goal streak and has 10 of his 13 on the season in nine games since returning from injury Dec. 5.
“When you’re feeling good, things are easier, things slow down,” he said. “When you’re not feeling good, everything seems fast. … So much of hockey and sports are results-driven. And when you’re not getting the results, you know that it’s about the process and about getting your looks and getting your chances and being around it.”
The Kings, meanwhile, kick off a five-game homestand with Saturday’s tilt, hoping to rebound following back-to-back losses in the finale of a seven-game road trip that spanned 13 days. Los Angeles has struggled slightly since posting a sixth straight win against the New York Islanders, dropping four of the six games that followed (2-2-2).
Despite the average results on the trip, the Kings are just one point behind the Oilers for second place in the Pacific Division.
“It’s a pretty good trip,” coach Jim Hiller said. “We would have liked points out of (a 3-1 loss to the Washington Capitals on Sunday), but the trip itself was good. We played some pretty good hockey.”
The comforts of home could help fuel the team to get the results it missed out on during its road trip. Los Angeles has been one of the best home teams thus far, going 10-2-1 in 13 games. The Kings have won five straight as the hosts, with their last defeat coming on Nov. 20 against Buffalo.
Defenseman Mikey Anderson has been stellar for the team on the back end in the absence of Drew Doughty, averaging a career-high 22:43 of ice time, a minute-plus more than his previous high set two seasons ago.
“What an engine and he’s really taking a step,” Hiller said. “we’ve talked about that more than once. He’s a really important player for us.”
–Field Level Media
