It was one of those games where it looked like both teams would be happy with the point, then figure things out after that.
“The last 10 minutes, everybody was kind of waiting for an overtime,” said Edmonton Oilers defenceman Mattias Ekholm.
Alas, it would never get to extra time, thanks to a loose rebound courtesy of Calvin Pickard, and another in a series of unaware defensive plays by Evan Bouchard that resulted in a game-winner for the St. Louis Blues.
Bouchard stood next to Pius Suter in the low slot while the Blues forward went backhand-to-forehand, easily beating Pickard on the rebound for the winner with 1:23 to play. The Blues won 3-2, snapping a seven-game losing streak in a game the Oilers had led 2-0 at the midway point.
It was 2-2 after two periods, and until the Pickard-Bouchard play Edmonton had controlled the period.
“Going back in (to the room) from that second period, knowing that you’ve got to win a period to win a game on the road,” Ekholm said. “We had our looks, but I think we can do a better job of imposing our will a little bit more in that third. Maybe earning that win more than we did tonight.
“We had some glimpses, but I think we can do more.”
When you’ve got the 32nd-place team in the NHL on the ropes to the tune of 2-0, finding at least a point on the road should be mandatory.
“We had our chances — it’s not like we were playing it safe,” said head coach Kris Knoblauch. “We’re up 2-0 and then end up losing and not getting any points…
“A minute-and-a-half (left), to give them that goal, like that… It’s tough.”
Like any coach, Knoblauch puts his best offensive defenceman on the ice late in a game because he’s giving his team a chance to push for a goal. But Bouchard’s level of defensive awareness through 14 games this season has been atrocious.
Only six of 719 NHL players have a worse plus-minus than Bouchard’s minus-9 this season, and Edmonton’s highest-paid defenceman cost his team at a key moment once again.
It was the kind of game in which the Oilers usually extend their lead past the point where a late goal can be so costly. But they’re 1-4 when they score only two goals this season, and Monday night was another lesson in letting a team hang around.
Connor McDavid took an offensive-zone penalty on Colton Parayko to kickstart the Blues, who scored a power-play goal to make it 2-1. Just 2:30 later they scored again, and 30 good minutes of work by Edmonton was erased in 150 seconds.
“It’s early in the year, and I don’t think any team is perfect at this time of the year,” Ekholm said. “These close games, just getting points all of the time matters a lot. I think there is room for improvement.”
Roslovic learning ropes on power play
Jack Roslovic has taken over the net front position on the power play from David Tomasek, a healthy scratch Monday.
He deposited another McDavid pass from the crease — his second in as many games — as he becomes comfortable in the power-play position left open by Zach Hyman’s injury absence. He’s enjoying learning the ropes on the NHL’s top power-play unit so far this season.
“It’s cool to see their process, be a part of their process, and try to find the open spots for them,” Roslovic said of a veteran Oilers unit. “(You’re) continuously learning — what to do, where to be… It’s such an important part of the game, it’s fun to get the opportunity to be there.”
McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (two assists Monday) and Bouchard have worked together on the Oilers top power-play unit for years. Roslovic hasn’t been on the unit for a week yet, so he’s got some catching up to do.
“Code signs, code words that I’m trying to figure out. Plays that they run,” he said.
So what’s his plan to fit in on an Oilers power play that has 10 goals in its last 20 opportunities?
“There’s one puck and two posts. Stay by those three things, and … remain an available option.”
OIL SPILLS — McDavid notched points No. 1,100 and 1,101 (364 goals, 737 assists), becoming the fourth-fastest player in NHL history to hit that milestone behind Wayne Gretzky (464 GP), Mario Lemieux (550 GP) and Mike Bossy (725 GP). McDavid did it in 726 games. McDavid reaches 1,100 points a full 124 games faster than any active player, beating Sidney Crosby (850 GP), and has a 10-game points streak versus the Blues … Hyman and Mattias Janmark continue to skate with the team, and are tracking to return mid-month. “A week, maybe a little bit more,” Knoblauch said. “Both of those guys we hope to get in before, or by, our next road trip out to the East (beginning on Nov. 12).” … Edmonton is in Dallas on Tuesday night, where they’ll face goalie Casey DeSmith, with Jake Oettinger’s wife having given birth to a baby on Monday.
