You can only blow so many third period leads and win in overtime, and finally, the odds caught up with the Edmonton in a 4-3 OT loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Oilers coughed up a third-period lead for the fourth time in five games, holding a 2-1 lead with seven minutes to play but requiring a late Leon Draisaitl goal with the goalie pulled to rescue a point on Saturday night.
Connor McDavid’s shot on a partial breakaway in OT was saved by Anthony Stolarz, then Mitch Marner was more precise, wiring his wrist shot off the post and past Stuart Skinner seconds later for the winner. That was the margin of defeat in a wildly entertaining game, where McDavid had another two-point night but went minus-three on an Evan Bouchard mistake and Marner’s OT winner.
Blown Lead
With Darnell Nurse leaving the game early — more on that later — Bouchard rose to the occasion with a game-high 25:39 Saturday. He all but undid a good night’s work however, with a third-period decision that he just can’t make with the game on the line.
With Edmonton leading 2-1 with seven minutes to play, behind a pretty good defensive effort and stellar goaltending by Skinner, Edmonton gave up two goals in 59 seconds, keyed by a bone-headed Bouchard giveaway that turned the momentum in a game the Oilers had well in control.
Inexplicably, Bouchard decided on a breakout pass through the middle of the Oilers zone. His effort struck McDavid squarely in the pants and sat there for Matthew Knies, who fired a shot past a surprised Skinner.
Bouchard had all kinds of time, and the decision to go up the middle goes against every tenet of sound defensive play. It was as poor a decision as he’s made in a season that has seen plenty of them.
“They weren’t even scoring chances that (the Maple Leafs) generated. It was mistakes on our behalf,” Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said afterward. “One, a loose puck that’s chased down. And another one, just a pass that goes off our player’s back end and stays in the slot.”
After Bouchard’s gaffe, Skinner got caught being indecisive on the Leafs go-ahead goal, between charging out to clear a loose puck and staying in his crease. He was in no-man’s land when Wainwright, Alberta, product Bobby McMann scored his second of the game.
It’s been a rough start to the season for Bouchard defensively, with some poor play and some bad luck. This error was 100 per cent of his own making, however, an inexcusable play that turned the game in the Leafs’ favour.
Nurse Injured
Nurse was playing his best hockey in a long while. Now, we’ll see how long he’s on the shelf after an reckless head shot by Toronto’s Ryan Reaves that will likely be grounds for a hearing with the NHL’s Department of Player Safety.
Nurse was carrying the puck around his net and coming out the other side early in Period 2, when Reaves met him there with a high hit. Whether Nurse should have been more aware is not relevant. The onus is on the forechecker not to deliver an illegal hit, particularly on an unaware player.
Nurse’s head was the principle point of contact for Reaves’ shoulder, comprising a bad hit in two ways: The violent head contact, and the area of the hit as Nurse circled his net, a hit the league has tried to eliminate for some time.
“It’s a dangerous play,” said Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. “You’ve got to choose the right path. (Reaves) doesn’t.”
Reaves has been suspended three times by the NHL, once for a head shot on then Vancouver Canuck Tyler Motte. The fact that Nurse’s head does not appear to move, changing the angle of the hit in any way, won’t bode well for Reaves if/when DoPS holds a hearing.
Meanwhile, the Oilers, who dressed seven defencemen in their last two games, may be without Nurse for a while.
“He’s big back there, the way he’s been playing for us,” said Adam Henrique. “He’s just solid everywhere, all over the ice.
“You never want to see bad hits, or hits the head,” Henrique said. “We all know that things happen fast — the game is fast and things happen quick. But you never want to see that.”
Nurse has missed only eight games over the past four seasons.
OIL SPILLS: Edmonton’s penalty kill is finding its feet, finally, with eight straight kills going back three games now. The Oilers killed a 57-second five-on-three in Toronto to climb out of the NHL’s basement into 31st spot. … Edmonton has allowed its most goals in the third period this season (24), but has also scored its most goals in the third (19). … In career game No. 660 for McDavid, he has 661 assists. … With 1-1-2 on Saturday, Draisaitl now has a four-game points streak (4-4-8), while Zach Hyman (who has just three goals) has a point in seven of his past eight games. … Edmonton has just nine goals in 18 first periods this season. … Viktor Arvidsson missed his second straight game, and with Nurse possibly out, it could be time for a call-up before games in Montreal and Ottawa on Monday-Tuesday. Noah Philp scored twice and was plus-four in Bakersfield’s 6-2 at San Diego Saturday. If it’s a D-man who gets called up, perhaps the Oilers take another look at Josh Brown, who had two assists Saturday. The Condors are down in SoCal — so someone will likely be on a Sunday morning flight out of LAX.
