EDMONTON — The not-so-secret secret here in Edmonton, where the Oilers’ roster houses a pair of mega stars, is that Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl can take up so much oxygen on a hockey team that there isn’t always enough left for everyone else.
By the time the ice time trickles down to guys like Max Jones, Adam Henrique and Trent Frederic, well, there just isn’t much to work with.
So, on a night where Draisaitl is pronounced as done for the regular season with a knee injury, winning a game on a goal by Jones and two points from Henrique is a rare gem.
That old cliché about everyone chipping in to replace Draisaitl actually came true Tuesday, as Edmonton flexed on the San Jose Sharks, breaking open a 3-3 game after 40 minutes to win 5-3.
Moving seven points up on San Jose — rather than being just three points ahead had the Sharks won in regulation — feels awesome. Doing it on the backs of the foot soldiers feels even better.
“It does,” said Henrique, who will play it out here as a 36-year-old 4C, with more than 1,000 NHL games under his belt. “Getting on the scoresheet, it seems like forever, personally.”
Henrique hasn’t dented the twine since Oct. 23, but was the only two-point Oiler Tuesday, with a pair of assists.
And Jones rammed home the winner, a replica of Zach Hyman’s insurance goal, as both third-period markers came from within four feet of the goal line.
“We lost two battles in front of the net. (We need to) win the battles,” said Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky.
For one night at least, the Oilers were what a real team should be: Four lines that find a way to help, with the fourth line taking their turn in the sun.
“Rico (Henrique) has got tons of experience,” marvelled Jones. “He knows how to make little shares, little plays around the ice. Freddy is a big body, obviously, in on the forecheck with me. Nice to get pucks back and work them, and grind them down from there.”
The up-and-coming Sharks are going to win plenty of these games in the next many years. But not this game, on this night.
With Edmonton smelling a chance to bury the chasing Sharks on Game 5 of their five-game road trip, the Oilers sat down after two periods embroiled in a 3-3 tie. They’ve been to consecutive Stanley Cup Finals, and the route to each of those was littered with gut check games like this one.
“We had some lapses in this game, in the second period,” said newcomer Connor Murphy. “So for the guys to take control in this room after the second, then come back in the third really hungry and bring that team effort… It’s really important."
“Everyone says it's cliche for everyone to chip in, but it really is true,” said Murphy, an Irishman who scored on St. Patty’s Day. “When the offence isn’t going to come as easy, it's going to take a little more of just being responsible with your play. And it doesn't even mean you need to score that many. It takes what it takes, whether it’s scoring five or winning 1-0.
“Anytime a star player goes out, there's minutes to be had that get dispersed to other players. So it's everyone's time to shine, really. To step up and take those minutes in a positive way.”
Meanwhile, Hyman scored his 29th goal in 50 games this season, while Connor Ingram gave the Oilers another quality start in goal.
Murphy has settled Darnell Nurse nicely on a big, string second pairing, while the top pair of Mattias Ekholm and Evan Bouchard played against the Macklin Celebrini line all night and came out at plus-2 apiece.
Thirteen of 18 skaters had a point, and on a night where Edmonton was without its top goal scorer it still managed to find the five necessary to win.
“We’re not going to be able to score five every night, but it’s nice when guys are feeling a part of it,” Hyman said. “Nobody is going to be able to replace Leon, he’s one of the best players in the world. Collectively, as a group, everybody’s got to raise their game and be a little bit better. We got contributions all through the line-up.”
As for Draisaitl, his state of health will remain a bit of a mystery.
The Oilers confirm he won’t play for the remainder of the regular season. What they will not say, however, is that he’ll return for the playoffs.
“Right now the timeline we’re using is the end of the regular season,” head coach Kris Knoblauch reported. “And once the playoffs start we will reevaluate. That’s where we’re at.”
