Photo Credit: Amber Bracken/The Canadian Press
The Edmonton Oilers have been on a little streak of wins lately. In last night’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes, the Oilers came out on top for their third game in a row with a 6-3 defeat. Edmonton’s Jordan Eberle was a big asset to the team’s win with his remarkable two goals and one assist. He scored his first goal of the season in the middle of the second period when he made the quick move to pick off Hurricanes Jay Harrison’s clearing pass. He passed it off to teammate Taylor Hall, before receiving it back and making the perfect shot. The other four goals for the Canadian team came from teammates Jesse Joensuu, who was able to make his shot due to a mishandled shot by Hurricanes Nikita Nikitin, Leon Draisaitl who, just like Eberle, scored his first goal of the season, Matt Hendricks who scored an empty net goal, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins who scored his third goal of the season. They worked together to make a turnaround from their troubling beginning of the 2014-15 season.
When it came to the Carolina Hurricanes, their playing time was not up to par with the opposing team. Riley Nash, Jeff Skinner, and Jay Harrison were the only three teammates on the Hurricanes to score goals. The Hurricanes could have had a lead at the top of the game when teammate Jay McClement attempted a shot, only to hit the post behind Oilers goalie Ben Scrivens, which the team had 15 shots on during the first period. The Hurricanes tied the game with two minutes left in the second period, but it was not enough to hold on to when the Oilers took the lead, and continued to lead with a power-play goal just a few minutes into the third.
Last night’s game was the first time these two teams have played each other since last season. The Edmonton Oilers hope to continue their winning steak, and after the next game, the team will have to decide whether or not they are going to keep Draisaitl, their third overall pick in the NHL draft who showed exceptional teamwork, or if they are going to send him down to the junior team. Though the Carolina Hurricanes are said to be off to the worst franchise start with 0-5-2, with enough teamwork and a better build up of chemistry just like their recent opponents, they can definitely make a positive turnaround.
