Edmonton Oilers continue slump after lethargic loss in New York

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New York – They started slow, fell asleep halfway through, and finally got what they deserved.

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In a season that is picking up steam very quickly, the Edmonton Oilers were kneeling on a wave of failure Wednesday.

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A 3-0 decision to the hosts New York Islanders saw the Oilers fall to 10-10 on the season, losing seven of their last 10 games and dropping out of the wild card playoff spot.

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If the Oilers needed a reason to fire, aside from the fact that they’ve been out of shape lately and need to turn things around before the hole gets too deep, they’re a popular but struggling goal. They may have gathered around keeper Jack Campbell. He is in his first starting lineup since losing 7-2 to the Carolina Hurricanes five games ago.

If the Oilers’ plan was to get up and give him room for early support and a breather, they never did. Did not score the shot into the net.

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It’s the fourth time in their last seven games they’ve walked out of the starting gate on their knees. They were 11-1 in 10 minutes against Tampa Bay, 11-0 in 9 minutes against Florida, 12-2 in 13 minutes against Los Angeles, and 8-1 in 12 minutes on Wednesday night.

They eventually came alive as usual and by the end of the first period the shots were a respectable 12-9 for the Islanders.

Both teams were 7-1 when we scored for the first time this season, so there was an underlying urgency to make it 1-0, but again, we’ll know that from the Oilers’ side. I can not do it. They limped again and he lost 2–0 before scoring his first shots on goal at 4:33 and 6:39.

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It started when New York broke out with a special rush during shorthand, but Jean-Gabriel Pajot waltzed unharmed between Tyson Barry and Ryan Nugent Hopkins, deflecting a centering pass past Campbell. It was a goal when

Just 2:06 later, Pageau’s pass from the corner banked into the net with Evan Bouchard’s stick off. In what appeared to be bad luck, Anders Lee was waiting at the backdoor.If the puck wasn’t off Bouchard’s stick, he could easily tap in.

This is just another example of the Oilers not trying hard enough around their net.

It was the same with the 3-1 goal. Sebastian Ajo walked alone to about 15 feet from the point, took the pass, and ripped home a free shot from close range.

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“We talk about being net heavy all the time,” said head coach Jay Woodcroft. You can do a better job in the paint but certainly reaching the other team’s paint and having netfront killer instincts on the attacking side is what some people get out of Schneid It is useful for

Edmonton lost 3–0 in the second intermission, but this had nothing to do with Campbell. Had he not been there to mitigate the damage, it could have been worse.

And when Edmonton got a chance on the other side of the ice, Islanders goalkeeper Ilya Sorokin didn’t bring them to life.

The Oilers capped a three-game trip with a matinee game against the New York Rangers, and it’s not going to be easy from here either.

Email: rtychkowski@postmedia.com

On Twitter: @Rob_Tychkowski