GREGOR: NO PANIC IN OIL COUNTRY
By: Stephen Lylyk, RP Show Intern
“I don’t think we’ve played a full 60 minutes yet in these first three games.”
Those were the words of Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft in his postgame interview, following a surprise 4-2 home loss to the Buffalo Sabres.
TSN Edmonton pundit Jason Gregor gave an explanation for the Oilers loss during his Wednesday appearance on the Rod Pedersen Show.
“They got ‘goalie-ed’,” exclaimed Gregor. “Sabres Goalie Eric Comrie really stood on his head, especially during the first and third period where the oilers outshot the sabres 39-14 and only outscored them 2-1.”
The Oilers garnered a reputation for offensive output last season, but as Gregor explains, goals have been tough to come by through three games.
“Edmonton last year was one of the top 10 teams scoring 5 on 5,” said Gregor, “right now they’re 30th. It’s not from a lack of shots and chances. Their scopes are just a little off right now”
When asked about the scoring struggles following the Sabres defeat Woodcroft emphasized his confidence in his players turning things around.
“We know that if we keep pouring those grade A chances on net we have confidence that it will turn for us.”
While the season may only 3 games old the oilers are not off to their desired start as a team with postseason ambitions..
When asked about the vibe from the fan base Gregor had this to say as a response.
“Edmonton has high expectations this season,” stated Gregor. “This is a team that should be better than 1-2 and I expect them to be better. While I would say the fans are calm right now if you get to 1-3 or 1-4 things will change quickly and rightfully so.”
Oilers captain Connor Mcdavid used his postgame interview to emphasize confidence in his team despite yesterday’s result.
“I don’t think there’s any need to panic,” Mcdavid argued. “This group knows how important starts are, and we haven’t had our best for the first three. But I would expect our best is coming here.”
In other news winger Dylan Holloway did not participate in practice Wednesday after being on the receiving end of a vicious hit last night from Sabres defensemen Ilya Lybushkin.
As Gregor explained this has the potential to cause problems for the Oilers roster moving forward.
“If he’s out for a week he’s on IR, and the Oilers would have no spares, [thus] being forced to run with 20 players. That’s the issue when you run with such a thin roster. If you get into short term injuries you can get into a problem as far as the roster is concerned.”
The Oilers look to get back to 500 Thursday as they host the Eastern conference juggernaut Carolina Panthers.
“Carolina has beaten up teams for fun their first three games,” emphasized Gregor. “Getting back to .500 won’t be easy.”
