January 24, 2022 by Eric Friesen

The Edmonton Oilers haven’t given their loyal fans much to cheer about over the past six weeks. However, they provided Oil Country with at least a few reasons for optimism this past weekend.

Most importantly, the Oilers snapped their dreadful seven-game losing skid with a 5-3 victory against the Calgary Flames on Saturday. There’s no better way to turn things around than by beating your biggest rival on Hockey Night in Canada.

The Dynamic Duo led the way as Leon Draisaitl tallied two goals and four points in the win over the Flames. It was his fourth four-point game of the season. Draisaitl also recorded his 336th career NHL assist to pass Ales Hemsky and Ryan Smyth for eighth on the Oilers all-time assists list.

Connor McDavid ended a three-game pointless drought with a pair of power-play assists. McDavid also registered his 153rd career NHL power-play assist to pass Hemsky for fifth on the Oilers all-time power-play assists list.

In goal, Mikko Koskinen showed great character after a terrible 6-0 loss on Thursday, as he bounced back with a tremendous 44-save performance in arguably the team’s most important game of the season.

Here are three other Oilers related from the weekend.

Bouchard shines on the power-play

Oilers fans have begging to see Evan Bouchard on the power-play for months, but Head Coach Dave Tippet has opted to keep Tyson Barrie as the anchor with the man advantage. However, due to Barrie suffering an upper body injury against the Florida Panthers on Thursday, Bouchard was given the opportunity to slide into that spot. And he made the most of it.

Trailing 2-0 in the second period, Bouchard scored two power-play goals 4:06 apart to tie the game. Bouchard has a powerplay slap shot and a seeing-eye wrist wrist that can both beat goalies from distance. He added a new weapon to Edmonton’s already lethal power-play.

“I think a big part of putting it through is making sure it gets past the first guy,” said Bouchard in his post-game interview on Oilers TV. “Luckily for me Jesse Puljujarvi was doing a great job at net-front, he was doing the dirty work in front and that’s how goals come.”

In his first full NHL season, Bouchard currently has eight goals and 21 points through 37 games, tying him for sixth in team scoring with Zach Hyman. The 21-year-old is on pace for 18 goals and 47 points in 82 games despite almost no power-play time.

If he can become a regular on the top power-play unit, Bouchard could reach the 50-point plateau this year. Bouchard would join Paul Coffey, Risto Siltanen, Charlie Huddy, Chris Pronger, Steve Smith, Sheldon Souray and Igor Kravchuk as the only defencemen in franchise history to put up 50 points in a single season.

Even if he doesn’t hit the milestone this season, Bouchard will almost certainly score 50 or more points in the years to come.

Holloway makes his pro hockey debut

After missing more than nine months with a hand injury, Oilers’ top prospect Dylan Holloway finally made his pro debut with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors on Saturday. Holloway had two assists en route to a 4-3 come-from-behind win over the San Jose Barracuda.

The former first-round pick (14th overall, 2020) was around the Condors during their playoff run last spring after signing his entry-level contract with the Oilers, but was unable to play due to his slow healing injury. Now, he’s back on the ice, and having an immediate impact with his new club.

“I actually felt pretty tired, but I guess that’s what happens when you don’t play a game for nine months,” said Holloway in his post-game interview with Condors TV. “But it was good, it was awesome. It was an awesome group of guys to make my pro debut with, and just an unreal win and unreal team game, too. So, it was a good. A lot of fun, too.”

Holloway picked up his third assist of the weekend in a 5-2 loss to the Barracuda on Sunday. The 20-year-old stood out with his blend of size, speed, vision and skill, and he clearly has the highest offensive ceiling of any player in the Oilers’ system.

I think there’s a real chance that Holloway will be ready to make the jump to the NHL by March, slotting into the Oilers’ top-nine as they gear up for a playoff run. It’s still early, but Holloway showed this weekend that he’s not far away from playing in the NHL.

Will the Oilers sign Kane?

This has been a topic that has divided Oilers fans over the last weeks. Should the Oilers sign Evander Kane?

Since the San Jose Sharks placed Kane on unconditional waivers for the purpose of contract termination on January 8, the Oilers have been rumoured to be one of the possible landing spots for the troubled left winger.

His long list of off-ice issues are more than most NHL teams are willing to look past. However, the Oilers recent 2-11-2 slide has put them in a desperate position. Missing the playoffs is not an option for the Oilers, and they could use an affordable forward who was on pace for 32 goals in 82 games in 2020-21.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman mentioned on 32 Thoughts: The Podcast that the Washington Capitals have shown interest in signing Kane as well. The Oilers are still waiting to learn if Kane will be suspended for breaking COVID-19 protocol over the Christmas break, but if he is cleared to sign with a new team, I expect the Oilers to be at the top of his list.

The 30-year-old won’t find a better opportunity around the league to revive his NHL career and earn a longer contract than playing alongside McDavid. No matter where he ends up signing, there will be a large portion of the fan base that will not be happy with it.