Klefbom and Lucic finally make in rain
With little to play for but moral victories, Oilers end droughts against Desert Dogs
EDMONTON 4, ARIZONA 3 (OT)
When the big victories are long out of reach, all you have left are the small ones — and from now until this season comes to a merciful end, that’s what the Edmonton Oilers will be playing for.
Anything positive will do, and they got a few shots of that in Monday’s win over the Arizona Coyotes, a 4-3 overtime victory highlighted by long overdue goals from Milan Lucic, who went 29 games without seeing twine, and Oscar Klefbom, who went 33.
For a few brief moments, they could all forget about the standings and enjoy the night.
“I felt so good for Milan when I saw the puck go in,” Klefbom said.
“There was a lot of frustration for him. I don’t know how many times he hit the post. He’s been so close. I was relieved when he scored.”
When Klefbom is relieved that you scored, you know it was a hell of a drought.
“I think it was pretty evident how frustrated I was,” Lucic said. “Slamming doors a bunch of times, breaking sticks, you name it. It was a tough stretch, that’s for sure.
“It was a really rough time to go through. Stretches like that, when you come out of them, sometimes it can make you better. You hope that happens moving forward.”
The slump weighed on him like nothing he’s experienced in his career. When he scored it in the first period, ripping a shot inside the far post, it brought the house down.
His teammates looked more excited about his goal than any they’ve scored themselves this season.
“It’s a relief for all of us, but a big relief for both of them,” Oilers head coach Todd McLellan said. “It’s been a long time coming. A lot of chances and opportunities for both of them that haven’t gone in and that’s a heavy weight that both of them have been carrying for two months. So to get that off their back and shoulders is huge, and the good sign for our team is we’re not where we want to be, but they all reacted positively to that. They’re pulling for teammates, they’re happy for them and you look for little team signs like that.”
Lucic said they have to continue fighting for moments like these and not let the rest of the season turn into a death march.
“It hasn’t been a fun year, but you still have time to have fun,” he said. “We’ve talked about it and we’ve reminded ourselves that things haven’t gone the way we had hoped and the way we expected it to go, but we’re still in the NHL and we still get to live our dreams in coming to the rink every day and playing in the league that we’ve always dreamed of playing in.
“That should be motivation enough to come and prove that you want to play.”
That’s the atmosphere Connor McDavid said they will try to create the rest of the way. “If you’re not having fun, then what’s the point?” he said. “We have to find a way to enjoy our time, play well and win games. Winning games is fun. That’s what we have to get back to.”
For Lucic, being out of the playoff race by February is as foreign as his scoring slump.
The only other time he missed the post-season, it came down to the final game.
“This is the first time I’ve been through something like this where there’s this many games left and you’re out of it,” he said. “I’m very fortunate that I’ve been on a lot of good teams where right now you’re playing for playoff position.
“One thing I’ve learned is you definitely don’t want to go through this again. That’s motivation enough to have a strong finish as a team and an individual. I’m trying to do whatever I can to get on a roll to end the season off, because I’m definitely not throwing in the towel to end off the year.”