Gaak! Edmonton Oilers followers waited all summer season for that prepare wreck?

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Effectively, that was brutal.

After all of the preparation, pleasure, hype and anticipation, Edmonton Oilers opening night time become a head-shaking carnival of disappointment.

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They have been dismantled in just about each facet of Wednesday’s humbling 8-1 spanking in Vancouver, a mismatch that was over earlier than it began however nonetheless appeared like it could by no means finish.

The good irony after a five-week coaching camp that started with captain’s skates on Sept. 5, adopted by eight pre-season video games, is that it seems just like the Oilers wanted extra time.

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It’s only one sport, and one sport in early October doesn’t imply something, however, man, did they give the impression of being stale and indifferent. Bear in mind, this was the Vancouver Canucks, not the Carolina Hurricanes or Toronto Maple Leafs, that undressed them on nationwide tv.

The entire areas the Oilers had been addressing for these final 5 weeks, and throughout the summer season earlier than that, took a savage beating.

It was onerous to maintain observe of the issues that went unsuitable, however let’s strive:

Vancouver’s finest gamers ran Edmonton’s finest gamers out of the rink. Brock Boeser had 4 objectives, J.T. Miller had a objective and 4 assists and Elias Pettersson had a objective, three assists and probably the greatest hits of the night time. Connor McDavid (minus three) and Leon Draisaitl mixed on a power-play objective.

Jack Campbell, a sufferer of the defensive breakdowns the Oilers vowed to shore up, received hooked after 4 objectives on 16 photographs.

Stuart Skinner got here in and gave up the 5-1 objective on Vancouver’s second shot, the 6-1 objective on their seventh shot, the 7-1 objective on their tenth shot and the 8-1 objective on their sixteenth.

The Oilers received shut out at five-on-five.

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Edmonton’s penalty kill gave up three objectives on Vancouver’s first 5 energy performs.

Defenceman Mattias Ekholm, who missed all of coaching camp with a hip difficulty, remains to be injured and couldn’t make it to the beginning gate.

Evan Bouchard seems misplaced with out Ekholm.

Wage cap points pressured the Oilers to play with 17 skaters (11 forwards and 6 defencemen), though so did the Canucks, so it’s not even an excuse.

A staff that was speculated to have matured confirmed its frustration with six minor penalties.

There’s plenty of season left and that is very doubtless only a short-term glitch mixed with some opening night time jitters and a wave of Vancouver momentum they couldn’t cease.

Nevertheless it additionally makes one factor very clear: Regardless of how many individuals decide them to win a Stanley Cup, this season isn’t going to be simple.

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