The Edmonton Oilers suffered a tough 4-1 loss to the Dallas Stars, marking another loss early in the season after two wins that suggested the Oilers might be back on the right track. Despite dominating the opening period, the Oilers failed to capitalize on early momentum, particularly struggling with their power play opportunities.
Head coach Kris Knoblauch note that the team is at a point where something needs to be done about their lack of power play success. He said:
“We’ll look at it to you know we’re at the point where we got to be considering about making some adjustments to it just because you know there’s times of every power play going to go through a stretch of not scoring, but you know we’ve gone six games in now and we’re 1-15.”
He added, “I’m not sure if we do it right away but it is certainly something that is on our minds.”
Zach Hyman, who is typically the Oilers’ top scorer on the power play hasn’t gotten a goal yet this season. By this time last year, he had six. Snake bitten, he noted, “We keep going there, we keep getting those chances around the net they’re eventually going to fall. You can’t get frustrated, you have to keep going there and they’ll go in.”
Knoblauch didn’t clarify what adjustments might be on the horizon, but it could be personnel or different plays to try and switch up the looks. The Oilers have had one of the best power plays in the NHL over the past three seasons, but like any offensive set-up, teams adapt.
Oilers Had This Game But Didn’t Capitalize When They Need To
The Oilers came out strong in the first 20 minutes, controlling the pace of play and applying pressure through aggressive forechecking. However, as Knoblauch noted, the turning point came when the Stars earned a power play midway through the second period and scored on it right away.
On the other end, the Oilers had their chances, they were unable to convert. The combination of those two things deflated Edmonton.
Dallas responded with two more goals before Leon Draisaitl was finally able to put one in with 2:22 remaining in the third period. Pressing with the net empty, the officials didn’t call a trip on Jeff Skinner and Dallas scored an empty net goal to seal it.
Edmonton is now 2-4 on the season. Their power play is typically their biggest weapon but it’s been letting them down. They will need it to improve if the Oilers hope to turn things around.
Next: Can Oilers Fix One Final Flaw in Time to Take Down the Stars?
