Oilers, Flames strive to turn fortunes in Battle of Alberta
The Edmonton Oilers failed to take advantage of a lengthy homestand. Now they must try to turn the tide on the road in their final game before the Olympic break.
The Oilers, who finished an eight-game homestand 4-4, will look to snap a two-game skid on Wednesday night when they visit the rival Calgary Flames in the Battle of Alberta.
The latest disappointment for the Oilers was a 5-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday. The clash was tied 2-2 seven-plus minutes into the third period before Toronto scored a pair of power-play goals 31 seconds apart.
"We haven't been playing our best," Oilers forward Kasperi Kapanen said. "Playing eight games in a row at home, you would like to win more games, but that's how it is now, and you can't do anything about it. We just got to go (Wednesday) and try to get a big two points."
Despite the struggles, Edmonton is tied with the Vegas Golden Knights atop the Pacific Division, although the Oilers have played two more games.
With Vegas having its share of struggles lately, the Oilers missed a chance to leapfrog into first place, and two key culprits were the penalty kill and defensive play.
Edmonton has surrendered 32 goals in the last seven outings. Seven of those goals came during opposition power plays.
"There's adjustments that I think our team can make. We have a big game against Calgary. We've got to look forward to that," defenseman Darnell Nurse said. "Our team is at our best when we're not looking big picture. Simplify and zoom in on the day, on the challenge. We've just got to get to that."
Not that the Flames would ever feel sympathy for their provincial rivals, since Calgary again is struggling. The Flames are looking to rebound from a 4-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday and have lost six of their past seven games (1-4-2). The results have left Calgary 11 points out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Like the Oilers, the Flames believe they deserved a better result against Toronto. After falling behind 3-0, the Flames scored a pair of goals past the midway point of the second period. They had several chances to draw even before an empty-net goal sealed their fate.
"But at the end of the day, you have to find a way to make a play," said Calgary forward Nazem Kadri, who netted one goal and one assist in the loss. "I think we did just about everything we could to get back into that game. ... All around I think it was definitely a winnable game for us."
Although the Flames appear destined to miss the playoffs and are the focus of a litany of trade rumors, they are not giving up. In fact, Calgary has claimed two of the three meetings this season in the Battle of Alberta thanks to a desire to at least go down swinging.
"We have a lot of guys that battle hard in this room, and we have really good leaders that lead the way," forward Joel Farabee said. "There's no quit ever in this locker room."