“Look at us. Who would’ve thought? Not me,” said Paul Rudd, said Connor Ingram.

The Edmonton Oilers netminder smiled ear to ear when he was interviewed by Tony Brar in-house after the 4-2 win over Anaheim on Saturday afternoon. Ingram held down the fort despite the Ducks’ furious attempt for their 26th comeback victory of the season, making 29 saves on 31 shots. 

He alluded to Rudd’s appearance on the popular YouTube series Hot Ones that became a meme, as the crowd applauded his effort. 

Credit to the Oilers. Everything about that game reeked of being a disappointing scheduled loss, a flat spot-type excuse. But they weren’t emotionally disengaged, and they didn’t overpass the puck: hallmarks of their game once they get a couple of wins under their belt.  

It was 90 per cent a great effort and 10 per cent a hold-on-tight-for-dear-life stretch. 

The Oilers now have 97.1 per cent odds to make the playoffs, according to Moneypuck. A week ago, following the Connor McDavid comments about Jon Cooper and, therefore, Kris Knoblauch, there was certainly strife in northern Alberta. Deservedly so. 

There’s no changing the past. The Oilers will not be an elite regular-season team this season.

But they’ve been afforded time to figure out a structured version of their game, especially without Leon Draisaitl. The flip side is that it’s forced the guts of the team to step up and play elevated roles. 

They are showing they’re capable. 

Dialled in early

One area that’s gotten my attention is the Oilers’ first periods. They’ve only allowed four first-period goals in their last seven games.  

The Oilers are starting games on time. Now, they do still have fire drill stretches, like the third period against Anaheim. Luckily, they have a defensively focused sicko like Jason Dickinson, who left Rogers Place genuinely bothered he was on the ice for two goals against. 

“It definitely got a little tighter than it needed to,” said Dickinson after the win. “We were playing such a good game until those two goals.

“I’ll wear those on my shoulders – they are going to bug me.”. 

It was a great week for Dickinson quotes. Sportsnet’s Mark Spector had a prescient moment when he asked Dickinson whether he had much hatred yet for Vegas. 

“I haven’t quite built up that hatred for Vegas. I haven’t had quite as many run-ins, maybe as Edmonton and the Edmonton fan.” 

Fast forward to the end of the first period, Dickinson got laid out by a penalty-worthy, and fine-worthy, chicken wing hit from Jeremy Lauzon. In turn, Dickinson created a massive scrum to end the period. 

It’s this........

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