Oilers Lose Despite Great Outing by Bouchard

The Edmonton Oilers wasted a legendary performance from defenseman Evan Bouchard. He became the first defenseman to score a hat trick in a season opener since Mark Howe. Howe did so in 1980 for the Hartford Whalers. Bouchard also became the first defenseman in NHL history to record five points during a season opener.

You rarely get many performances like that from your superstars. Particularly from a defenseman playing the kind of all-around game that Bouchard does. He was engaged at both ends of the ice. From logging heavy minutes to moving the puck efficiently, he consistently made an impact whenever he was on the ice.

For Oilers head coach Mike Babcock, that made the result all the more frustrating. Babcock felt the Oilers were handed an outstanding performance from one of their most important players and failed to turn it into two points. Edmonton got the kind of effort they needed from their top defender, but ultimately couldn’t capitalize on it.

Oilers Head Coach Scratching His Head

Babcock is left to wonder how a performance that strong could end with the Oilers on the wrong side of the scoreboard.

“In the offensive zone, he’s special to say the least,” Babcock said. “You can’t have a guy with five points and lose the hockey game; it just doesn’t make any sense. So, we can talk about these guys and the talent and all that, but we gotta do things right as a group.”

“That’s the great thing about the National Hockey League: if you don’t do it right, you feel bad when you leave the rink.”

For Babcock and his staff, the challenge now is to make sure Tuesday’s chaotic loss is viewed as an isolated setback rather than the beginning of another troubling trend. There’s plenty of time to correct the mistakes, but the Oilers will need a much more disciplined and composed effort moving forward if it hopes to avoid digging another early-season hole.