Oilers ‘have to be more intense’
ANAHEIM, CALIF. — Pragmatic Edmonton Oilers captain Shawn Horcoff figured the team just had it too easy in the two games against the Calgary Flames, which is why they were snapped back to reality in the two losses that followed.
After they rolled up a cumulative score of 12-3 against their struggling provincial foes, the Oilers were exposed by the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday and on Saturday by the Los Angeles Kings, the defending Stanley Cup champions.
Now after two straight losses and just 10 games left to play in the NHL season, the Oilers sit on the outside of the Western Conference playoff cut-off line with a 16-15-7 record.
“We played a couple of pretty good teams and they kind of taught us the level we’re going to need to get to, to be successful,” Horcoff said after an off-ice day in California. ‘We have to be more intense. We have to increase the level of our game.”
The Oilers close out their four-game road trip Monday against the Anaheim Ducks. It’s the first meeting of the season between the clubs and the first of three they will play between now and the end of the campaign.
“We got pushed back a little bit, but we need to take that as a lesson. We still have a chance and we need to realize that,” said Horcoff, referencing two teams that took advantage of the Oilers’ undisciplined play. In both losses, the Oilers got into penalty trouble with some lazy stick infractions and paid the price.
“We know it’s going to take another little run like the one we just went on, but we just did it. Why can’t we do it again?”
The Ducks played the Kings Sunday night, so the Oilers have no excuse to not get off to a more energetic start in the Honda Center on Monday, especially if they’re convinced they still have a shot at making the playoffs. To do that, they may need to win eight of their last 10 games.
At the very least, the Oilers need to get back on track before the curtain closes on this lockout-shortened season.
“We need to get points now. Too late is going to be quick if we don’t,” Oilers goaltender Devan Dubnyk said. “We have to find a way to pick up our game individually and as a team.
“We need to look at how (the Vancouver Canucks and Los Angeles Kings) played and played hard. That’s how it’s going to be from here on in. We’re playing a lot of good teams to finish the year and we’re going to have to find a way.”
The Oilers had strung together five consecutive wins after an 8-2 victory over the Calgary Flames to start the road trip last Wednesday, but then lost 4-0 to the Canucks the next night and 4-1 to the Kings on Saturday.
“These last 10 games, we have to raise our level every night because the games are just going to keep getting harder,” said centre Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
“We need to find a way to get better here.”
Defenceman Ladislav Smid said the Oilers need to “get some desperation into our game. We have to realize that all we have left are these 10 games and we have to pretty much win all of them. “We have to wake up.” The Ducks faced L.A. without Ryan Getzlaf (leg injury). He is listed as day to day. While he leaves a 43-point hole in the lineup, the formidable Ducks are going to present a challenge for the Oilers.
Jonas Hiller (14-4-4 with a 2.46 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage) is expected to get the start in net.
“The way the year has gone, it seems like every time we’ve had a setback, we’ve responded fairly well,” said Oilers winger Jordan Eberle. “We realize we have a bit of a mountain to climb here, but at the same time, I think this is a situation that will make us a better team in the end.
“This is a team we haven’t seen yet and we’re going to push back. What better way than to do it against these guys. This is an opportunity for us to prove to the league that we’re for real and that we can move up the standings.”