The primary rule of being on a profitable streak? You do not speak about being on a profitable streak.
At the very least, that is the mantra contained in the Edmonton Oilers dressing room.
The Oilers can tie the NHL file with their seventeenth win in a row Tuesday night time in Las Vegas. The file is held by the Pittsburgh Penguins, who went on their historic run within the spring of 1993.
The storylines write themselves. The Oilers may tie the file with a victory over the defending Stanley Cup-champion Golden Knights, the identical workforce that ended their playoff run final spring.
WATCH | Oilers followers enterprise to Vegas searching for historical past:
The Oilers had been downplaying the importance of the streak after Monday’s apply at Rogers Place.
“What’s made us so profitable over the past little bit is that we did not speak about it,” mentioned Oilers all-star ahead Leon Draisaitl. “We did not make too massive of a fuss out of it. We’re simply going to proceed down that path. It should be check for us tomorrow, and hopefully, we are able to hold it going.”
“We’re not speaking about it in there [the dressing room],” mentioned captain Connor McDavid, who at the moment sits tied for fourth within the scoring race with 67 factors. “I believe, for us, it is simply concerning the day-to-day — staying centered on what’s in entrance of us. And what’s in entrance of us is an excellent Vegas workforce, one which’s forward of us within the standings, and one that we would prefer to catch.”
“We’re simply centered on taking part in our greatest hockey.”<br><br>Connor McDavid recaps his weekend at <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/NHLAllStar?src=hash&ref_src=twsrcpercent5Etfw”>#NHLAllStar</a> & appears forward to tomorrow’s matchup in Vegas. <a href=”https://twitter.com/Enterprise?ref_src=twsrcpercent5Etfw”>@Enterprise</a> | <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoOilers?src=hash&ref_src=twsrcpercent5Etfw”>#LetsGoOilers</a> <a href=”https://t.co/tObHmZjnMy”>pic.twitter.com/tObHmZjnMy</a>
—@EdmontonOilers
Made up for disastrous begin
The Oilers’ win streak has pushed them to 3rd within the Pacific Division, after a disastrous 3-9-1 begin to the 12 months that led to the firing of head coach Jay Woodcroft. The Oilers are 5 factors behind Vegas, however have 5 video games in hand. The Oilers are 12 factors behind the first-place Vancouver Canucks, however have 4 video games in hand.
The Oilers final performed Jan. 27, once they beat Nashville 4-1 at Rogers Place. After a break for the all-star sport and a bye week, some followers could really feel that the workforce’s momentum was interrupted. Nonetheless, coach Kris Knoblauch prioritizes relaxation over considerations about momentum.
Knoblauch is glad that the Oilers are beginning their post-break stretch with a three-game highway journey to Nevada and California. After a prolonged timeout, he believes it’s simpler to focus on video games whereas taking part in away from the house crowd.
“You’ll be able to enable your traces simply to roll. You are probably not nervous concerning the matchups a lot, it simply takes the stress off of everybody.”
“We’re simply treating it like each different sport.”<br><br>Coach Knoblauch on tomorrow’s matchup vs. the Golden Knights. <a href=”https://twitter.com/Enterprise?ref_src=twsrcpercent5Etfw”>@Enterprise</a> | <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoOilers?src=hash&ref_src=twsrcpercent5Etfw”>#LetsGoOilers</a> <a href=”https://t.co/2aArYCmXlO”>pic.twitter.com/2aArYCmXlO</a>
—@EdmontonOilers
Congested schedule forward
With 45 video games performed, the Oilers have video games in hand on everybody else within the NHL. Which means they go into the subsequent three months figuring out they’ve probably the most congested schedule within the league forward of them.
Regardless of having video games in hand to reel in Vegas and Vancouver, Knoblauch says he does not need the workforce to exhaust itself chasing down the leaders.
The important thing, he mentioned, is to be prepared for the playoffs once they start in April, whether or not or not it’s as a No. 1 seed or a No. 8 seed.
“We wish to win as many video games as we are able to,” mentioned Knoblauch. “However we do not wish to push so laborious that we waste up all our power chasing first place in our division. That’d be nice, and if that occurs, it occurs. However, finally, we simply wish to be getting higher day by day and placing ourselves ready to have success within the playoffs.”
