Early on as the Edmonton Oilers were succeeding, the feeling was still that they were arguably overly reliant on Connor McDavid and Cam Talbot.
As the Oilers heat up once more, there’s no denying that McDavid is the major catalyst. The frightening thing for opponents is that other players are stepping up as well.
Just consider the variety of forwards who chipped in to Edmonton’s 6-3 win against the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday:
McDavid: goal, two assists
Milan Lucic: goal, three assists
Leon Draisaitl: goal, assist
Jordan Eberle: two goals
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins: goal
Patrick Maroon: assist
Seeing Lucic generate four points is big considering his hefty contract, yet the Oilers must be just as heartened to see Draisaitl get it going.
The 21-year-old is now on a five-game point streak with four goals and four assists. (McDavid has five goals and three assists during his own three-game point streak).
Tonight’s win gives Edmonton three straight victories, and they’ve been lopsided; they’ve outscored their opponents 16-5 during this stretch. Maybe the Oilers really are out of their funk after dropping eight of 10 games.