OILERS SNAPSHOTS: McDavid finally gets Saturday night in Toronto

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It seems odd the best player in the NHL, who hails from the Greater Toronto Area, had to wait this long to play on a primetime night against the Maple Leafs

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Derek Van Diest Connor McDavid (97) of the Edmonton Oilers turns the puck up ice against Mitchell Marner (16) of the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on March 27, 2021, in Toronto. Photo by Claus Andersen /Getty Images Article content

Connor McDavid, in his sixth season with the Edmonton Oilers, had never played on a Saturday night in Toronto until now.

It seems odd the best player in the NHL, who hails from the Greater Toronto Area, had to wait this long to play on a primetime night against the Maple Leafs.

Granted, the Oilers played in Toronto just once a year prior to this year, but it still seems like a missed opportunity the previous five seasons.

“The league likes to try and sneak us through here on a Monday or a Wednesday night, so for us to get a Saturday night game is exciting,” McDavid said prior to the contest. “As a kid, you obviously watch Saturday night hockey and growing up in the Toronto area, that was always the Leafs. So, it’s great to be able to play here on Saturday, it’s my first time.”

McDavid and the Oilers were well-rested heading into the game after being idle for a week following the postponement of a three-game series against the Montreal Canadiens due to COVID-19 concerns.

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The Canadiens had two players, Joel Armia and Jesperi Kotkaniemi, placed on the league’s COVID protocol list prior to the opening game of the series Monday, which had been postponed a few hours prior to puck drop.

The rest of the series was scrubbed the next day as a precaution. The Oilers stayed in Montreal before flying to Toronto on Thursday in preparation for the primetime stage.

Originally, the game against the Maple Leafs would have been the Oilers’ fourth in a week, but instead they arrived in Toronto a well-rested group.

“Obviously, it’s been a strange week,” McDavid said. “It’s been boring, I think. Honestly, that’s the first word that comes to mind. It’s almost been like a little bit of a bye week. We should be rested, guys should have legs, guys should have energy.

“When you come off a bit of a delay like this, sometimes the attention to detail and the little things can be missed, so I think for us it’s important to dial that in right away and work our way back into the swing of things.”

LONG MEMORIES

The Oilers have not forgotten the beating they took in a three-game series against the Maple Leafs at Rogers Place at the beginning of the month.

The Maple Leafs won all three games, outscoring the Oilers 13-1 and, in the process, keeping McDavid from registering a point. The Oilers have gone 7-2-0 since then, but still felt they had something to prove against the Maple Leafs heading into the final two games of the season series.

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“They came into Edmonton and did what they did and we have to show, not only to them but to ourselves, that we can play with these guys and we can beat these guys,” McDavid said. “We’ve done it before. I think it was a combination of two things that happened in Edmonton, they played some amazing hockey and we played below where we should have been and the combination of those two things just didn’t add up well for us.”

While the Oilers surged after the series, the Maple Leafs stumbled. While many in Toronto were planning out the parade route, the Maple Leafs went on to lose six of their next seven. They’ve since bounced back with two straight wins heading in against the Oilers, knocking off the Calgary Flames at home and edging out an overtime victory against the Ottawa Senators.

“Obviously, after the last games that we played against them in Edmonton, they’re going to be a motivated group,” said Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly. “With any team, when you go on a stint like that where you don’t play your best hockey, you want to come out and respond and that’s what we expect.”

CONTENDING WITH DYNAMIC DUO

Together or on separate lines, the Maple Leafs knew they were going to have their hands full dealing with McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

Despite smothering the pair in a three-game sweep earlier this month, the Leafs knew it was unlikely to happen again, especially if they ended up on the same line.

“They’re pretty deadly together, they know where each other are going to be,” said Leafs forward Mitch Marner. “So you have to be ready, you have to make sure that when you think a pass can’t be made, they’re pretty good at finding a way to get it there. You just have to make sure you stay dialed in the whole time when they’re on the ice and just try to do your part.”

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Since being shut out in the three games against the Maple Leafs, McDavid put together a nine-game point streak, scoring seven goal and collecting 20 points in that span. Draisaitl had eight goals and 15 points since being limited to one point in the three games against Toronto.

“Obviously, they are two dangerous players, both on their own and when they’re playing together,” said Rielly. “I don’t think it changes a lot for our approach. You have to be aware when they’re out there, play the structure, play as a group. It’s not going to be one guy doing the job, it’s going to be the group at all times. I don’t think it changes too much, we just have to be focused on that task at hand, play our structure and we’ll be fine.”

Notes … According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, Oilers prospect Dylan Holloway played with a broken thumb in the University of Wisconsin’s upset loss to Bemidji State at the NCAAA men’s hockey tournament. Holloway, 19, was selected 14th overall by the Oilers in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. It has been speculated Holloway would leave school and sign with the Oilers at the conclusion of his U.S. college season.

Email: dvandiest@postmedia.com

On Twitter: @DerekVanDiest

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