Archibald makes most of promotion with Oilers
Oilers forward scores clutch goal in turn on top line against Vancouver
Considering he didn’t have a point all season, Josh Archibald seemed an interesting selection to play on the Edmonton Oilers top line with Connor Mcdavid against the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday.
Yet, it did not take Archibald long to make his head coach look brilliant, scoring midway through the first period of the
3-2 win in Vancouver.
Archibald tipped in a blue-line feed from defenceman Darnell Nurse to give the Oilers the lead in the gritty victory against the Canucks, who won the first game of the home-and-home series 5-2 on Saturday.
“That was a big win, I think that was a playoff-type hockey game when you’re grinding for 60 minutes like that,” Archibald said. “We’re down a couple of bodies but we had a couple of guys step up (Sunday), so I thought it was a great team win.”
Signed as a free agent to a one-year, Us$1-million contract this off-season, Archibald was promoted in the absence of centre Ryan Nugent-hopkins and winger Zack Kassian.
Nugent-hopkins has missed the past four games with a hand injury and Kassian hurt his back in the loss to the Canucks on Saturday.
The Oilers were also without goaltender Mike Smith and had to recall Stuart Skinner from the Bakersfield Condors on an emergency basis to back up Mikko Koskinen. They also lost defenceman Matt Benning in the third period after he was hit in the head with a shot and pegged again in the leg later.
The Oilers took Monday off after a busy weekend and will play host to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday (7:30 p.m.) at Rogers Place.
“He (Archibald) plays hard, he’s quick, he’s been snake-bit a little this year,” said Oilers head coach Dave Tippett. “It was good to see. We were trying to spread our lines out. We played (Saturday) night, we wanted to play four lines and just spread it around and I was happy to see him get on the board.”
Archibald is hoping the goal kick-starts him offensively.
While he’s been doing a lot of good things for the Oilers this season, he hadn’t contributed offensively from his usual spot on the bottom two lines.
“He’s played well, he’s been a big part of our penalty kill,” Tippett said. “He’s not getting points, every player likes to get points, but he’s still doing some good things for us. It’s good to see him get rewarded, get on the scoreboard, I’m sure he’s relieved with that. He’s been a pretty good player for us.”
Getting moved up to play with
Mcdavid and James Neal was an opportunity for Archibald to play with offensive talent he usually cheers on from the bench.
“There was a lot of excitement when told I was playing with Mcdavid, he’s one of the best players in the world and he makes it easy for his wingers when he’s out there buzzing around,” Archibald said. “It was a lot of fun, and hopefully, I get another chance.
“It was good to get the first one and, hopefully, the nerves will calm down and they will start flowing now.”
Finishing off the opportunity in style, Archibald did not look like a player who struggles around the net. His deft redirection gave Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom little chance to make a save.
“It was a great play, a little cycle in the corner and Mcdavid tried to walk out and tried to find me originally and the puck went to Nurse at the point,” Archibald said. “I kind of just faded off to the side of the net and he made a great play; a slap pass and I just tipped it in.”
Playing with Mcdavid and Neal, Archibald stuck to his strengths and fought the temptation to give the puck to the NHL’S leading scorer every time he touched it.
Mcdavid reached the 51-point plateau (19 goals, 32 assists) in just his 29th game of the season Sunday.
“He’s very easy to read off, he talks a lot out there on the ice, especially with Neal out there, he’s always talking too,” Archibald said. “I think with those two playing together they made things easy for me. They don’t want the puck all the time, they want it at the right time and they’ll let you know when they want it, so they made it easy.”
A Regina product who was selected in the sixth round
(174th overall) by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2011 NHL Draft, Archibald, 27, had 12 goals and 22 points for the Arizona Coyotes last season.
“It definitely brings up the confidence when you get the first of the year so hopefully I can keep going forward,” Archibald said. “I don’t know if it’s an adjustment period or getting my bearings back, but once they start going in I start getting a little more confident in my play, too.”
He (Archibald) plays hard, he’s quick, he’s been snake-bit a little this year.