[ad_1]
The Edmonton Oilers scored thrice in the second period on the way to a convincing 7-2 pre-season win over the Calgary Flames Wednesday night at Rogers Place.
The Oilers struck six minutes in on the power play when Connor McDavid lifted a shot from a sharp angle over the right shoulder of Dan Vladar. McDavid played set-up man less than two minutes later, sending pass to Connor Brown for a one-timer goal.
“It might be more fun now,” Brown said after being reunited with his former Eerie Otters teammate. “He’s everywhere and when he’s on his game like that–he’s got the puck on a string–it’s fun to be out there with him.”
The Flames replied with goals from Nikita Zadorov and Walker Duehr 2:12 apart late in the first.
“We had an idea of what his strengths were,” Oilers Head Coach Jay Woodcroft said of Brown after the game. “I think we’ve managed him in the right manor and I think he’s going to fit our team like a glove.”
“He’s got life on the bench. He’s someone that brings energy–says good things–and I think that’s contagious,” Woodcroft added.
Lane Pederson beat Vladar on a breakaway early in the second to make it 3-2 Oilers. Draisaitl fired home a wrister from the top of the slot. McDavid stole the puck in front of the Flames net and passed to Brown for his second of the night.
“The reality is, our team has been working really hard on defence. So we go out in that third period and talked a lot about controlling the game and controlling the puck,” Brown said post-game. “I thought we played the majority of the game in the offensive zone and took care of the thing. There were a lot of positives in the third.”
In third, Vladar turned the puck over to McDavid, allowing him to pass to Evander Kane, who beat the scrambling Flames keeper for 6-2 lead. Rafael Lavoie added one more with five minutes left.
“He’s having a good camp,” Woodcroft said of Lavoie. “He’s highly competitive. It’s going to be competitive for that last forward spot and we’ll see how that shakes out.”
“At the end of the day, I’m a shooter and I see my game as a shooter,” Lavoie said. “That’s how I want to contribute to this team and it’s good to know that I’m able to.”
McDavid had a goal and three assists.
The Oilers finish the pre-season on Friday with a home game against Seattle (630 CHED, Face-off Show at 5:30 p.m., game at 7 p.m.).
© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
[ad_2]
Source link
