The Colorado Avalanche had played 67 games prior to Saturday and the Edmonton Oilers 64. None of those games came against each other until the Western Conference rivals met in Edmonton last night.
It’s one of three games the teams will play against each other the rest of the way, including the final day of the Regular Season in Colorado. Based on last night’s contest, they will all be worth watching.
The Avs edged it 3-2 in the final second of Overtime thanks to Artturi Lehkonen and, even though it wasn’t the result this Oilers fan wanted, I couldn’t help but enjoy every minute of the action. It was your archetypal ‘regular season game with a play-off feel’ affair.
Sean Walker, recently acquired by Colorado in a trade from the Philadelphia Flyers, scored twice and almost completed his hat-trick in Overtime with a breakaway chance that he just put over the bar. His second goal was set up by a gorgeous pass by Casey Mittelstadt, another recent recruit from Buffalo who became more and more influential as the game progressed.
On the Oilers’ end, Sam Carrick got his first goal for the club after his recent trade from the Anaheim Ducks, set up by mid-season recruit Corey Perry. The assist brought Perry’s career total to 900 and came after he had his stick taken out of his hands behind Colorado’s goal. As the puck dropped to him, Perry looked up and kicked the puck to Mattias Janmark who played a reverse pass into Carrick in front of the net to tuck it home.
The Viaplay UK coverage came from Sportsnet’s Hockey Night in Canada, with Harnarayan Singh on commentary alongside Louie DeBrusk.
Carrick’s goal was a very rare occasion when I was glad the Oilers’ usual commentator Jack Michaels wasn’t calling the moment. Jack is an excellent commentator, but I have an irrationally visceral dislike of his use of the word “soccered” as a verb to describe kicking the puck. “Perry soccered the puck to Janmark” would have almost annoyed me to much to enjoy the goal going in!
The equally excellent Singh refrained from using Michaels’ term, though, and so I was free to celebrate what at the time was the potential game-winning goal. Walker’s equaliser, and then Lehkonen’s buzzer beater, turned the game around for the Avs as they claimed their sixth win in a row.
It was a disappointing end from an Oilers point of view, but a losing bonus point was added to the team’s points total and all of us watching benefitted from seeing hockey of the highest order.
Roll on Friday April 5th and the two teams recommencing their rivalry at Rogers Place.
