The Edmonton Oilers are finally in the win column with a 4-3 overtime thriller against the Philadelphia Flyers. This game had everything. A lot of power plays, some big saves, a first NHL goal, a few fights, and an overtime hero. Edmonton had to battle back and fight from behind all game which showed their character that was nonexistent through their first three games. This was a gutsy win for a desperate Oilers squad, so here are a few takeaways:
What Is Goaltender Interference?
Once again, goaltender interference is a topic of conversation for the Oilers. Matvei Michkov opened the scoring for the Flyers after he jammed the puck and the goaltender’s pad into the net for his first career NHL goal. The Oilers challenged for goaltender interference, but the call on the ice stood as a good goal. This exact same play was called no goal during the Vancouver Canucks and Tampa Bay Lightning game earlier that night. So, what is the standard? Nobody knows.
Later in the period, Evan Bouchard ripped a puck past goaltender Samuel Ersson, but it was immediately waved off because Zach Hyman was ruled to be in the blue paint and made contact with the goaltender. That was another extremely questionable call. If that’s going to be called all season, there are going to be a ton of goals called back. The NHL should just reimplement the crease violation rule if this is how the games will be called. The interpretation of the rule seems to change game by game and there’s no consistency.
Through four games, the Oilers have had four goals called back, three for goaltender interference and one for an offside challenge. For a league that encourages scoring, they sure like taking goals off the board. The NHL has a serious problem on their hands.
Oilers‘ Secondary Scoring Contributes
The Oilers got some much-needed depth scoring at five-on-five courtesy of Adam Henrique and Connor Brown. Henrique cut the Flyers lead in half, going backhand, upstairs past the Flyers netminder. Eight minutes later Brown tied the game at two, on a one-timer from a great pass by Jeff Skinner. The new look third line of Skinner, Henrique, and Brown was really good. If they can build some chemistry, they have the potential to add an offensive layer to this forward group.
Oilers Show Bad Discipline
Through the first two periods, the Oilers looked like a frustrated group. They took seven minor penalties including an egregious cross-check at the end of the…
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