Oilers Loss To Red Wings Was Painful

Many Edmonton Oilers fans were left scratching their heads Monday night. They couldn’t find the team’s game on their Sportsnet feeds. In hindsight, they may have been better off missing it. Two nights after head coach Mike Babcock called out his team for Saturday’s poor performance, they delivered another disappointing effort. Babcock hoped to see a bounce-back after the 7-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

This time, it was the Detroit Red Wings who took advantage. They outworked Edmonton and dominated the second period to win 4-3 in a shootout. Despite Babcock’s criticism, the Oilers showed little improvement. This raises further questions about the team’s level of competitiveness and ability to respond when challenged.

“We gotta do a better job of playing better in the second period,” said defenseman Ryan Shea. “I feel like we give up too much in the second, whether it’s bad changes or we don’t get to our spots.”

Oilers Lose Second Game in a Row

It wasn’t all doom and gloom for the Oilers. Edmonton turned in a solid opening period, taking a 1-0 lead on an unusual Vasily Podkolzin goal. The second period was a different story. The Oilers spent much of the frame on their heels. However, they showed some life in the third, creating a few moments of promise.

Isaac Howard made the most of his opportunity on the Oilers’ second power-play unit, scoring his first goal of the season on the second of back-to-back Red Wings penalties. Colton Dach followed suit later in the period, tipping home a Ryan Shea point shot to give Edmonton another contribution from its depth players. For Howard, the goal had to feel especially rewarding after being a healthy scratch Saturday against the Maple Leafs.

Despite the loss, Babcock praised the hard work his players showed during Monday night’s contest.

“I thought Dacher had a really good night; I mean, played heavy,” said Babcock. “He’s a way better winger than he is a center, and as soon as we moved him to the wing, that helped.”

“I was real pumped for Howie. Hopefully, this can be a springboard opportunity for him. If you wanna play up the lineup, you gotta win battles and races and take care of the puck.”

Hyman Injured Again

Adding insult to injury, the Oilers suffered their second player injury in three games when winger Zach Hyman went down midway through the second period. In what appeared to be a routine play along the Red Wings’ blue line, Hyman was driven into the boards by defenceman Andreas Englund while attempting to play the puck.

Dazed by the impact, Hyman reached for his head before slowly falling backward onto the ice. He was helped off the ice shortly afterward, but Babcock had little to offer in the way of an update following the game. The coach acknowledged how difficult it was to see Hyman go down again, particularly given the time he had already missed due to injury this season.