Edmonton Oilers Lose 5-2 to the Sharks

San Hose’s Evander Kane was thrilled to learn he had been traded to San Hose from a team win last place to one that is in contention for the playoffs. Kane rushed to Edmonton to join the Sharks for his first game and made an immediate impact assisting with two goals during the second period and was instrumental in delivering some big hits to help the Sharks beat the Oilers and bringing a close to a three game losing streak.

Kane commenting said,

“I kind of come from not playing so much meaningful hockey to playing some meaningful hockey. Obviously, you get a little ramped up and I just tried to change the game in any way I can. It’s good to get on the board and contribute offensively and also with some other elements.”

San Jose’s Joe Pavelski scored one goal and earned three assists. Logan Couture, Timo Meier and Justin Braun each scored during the second period. An empty net goal by Chris Tierney gave the Sharks their fifth goal of the night and their first win in the last four games and bring a close to their losing streak.

The big game changer was the arrival of Kane from the Sabres as it gave Deboer the confidence he needed to have all four lines out on the ice.

For DeBoer, he feels that Evander Kane brings a bit of everything to the table stating,

“That’s why he’s as valuable as he is and as highly thought of as he is in the league. I liked his game tonight. I thought he worked really hard away from the puck. The offence and physicality are things you take for granted, but I thought defensively and away from the puck, I thought he really worked hard.”

SportsNet

Connor McDavid scored a first-period goal for the Oilers against Martin Jones as did Jesse Puljujarvi, but Jones made twenty-four saves for the night and shut out shots on net.
San Jose seemed like a different team than what has been seen in the last few games while on the road. Doug Wilson, the general manager of the Sharks, added good news for the team with the recent trade that saw San Jose getting two extra draft picks in the 219 draft and sent O’Regan to the Sabres in exchange for Kane.

Kane laced up in the morning before the Oilers game and went straight to the first line joining Pavelski and Joonas Donskoi. Having played with Pavelski in Russia, the combination proved to be dangerous right from the start and saw Kane helping the Sharks score in the second period.

Kane’s physical presence was felt by the Oilers as well with Kane nailing Matt Benning into the boards in what was to be the first of five goals.

Said Pavelski,

“It’s a good element for our team right now. That’s one thing that I think everyone is so excited for, that edge that he plays with. That compete level. You see it right away.”

The last 26 games Kane played with the Sabres saw him earn only seven points, but last night’s game saw two assists in his opening game as a Shark. The line Kane joined also saw Kane in a battle with Benning during the latter part of the second, and a strong forecheck in the third saw Meier scoring his 16th of the season. Couture added one more to the tally, and that was the end of the night for the Oilers.

Oilers forward Milan Lucic stated,

“The four goals that they did score were them creating turnovers in the [offensive] zone and pouncing on it. Twenty minutes lost us the game and it’s unfortunate with the start we had and a chance to have a great road trip.”

Needless to say, the Sharks seem back on track and are favoured by many hockey sportsbetting sites, and with a playoff spot near guaranteed for the team, betting will be high going into the 2018 NHL Playoffs.