NHL Scores: Oilers losing streak continues, Wild finally give up a goal

As it turns out Darcy Kuemper and the Minnesota Wild are not unbeatable, while the Edmonton Oilers remain incapable of beating anybody.

by Adam Gretz

Oct 18, 2014, 1:00 PM UTC

Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

It was a big night for the NHL's race to the basement with Edmonton, Calgary, Florida, Toronto and Buffalo all in action and the results were, well, pretty typical.

The Oilers continued their season opening losing streak to five games with a 2-0 loss to Vancouver. The good news for Edmonton is they at least looked like a passable NHL team and only allowed one goal until Henrik Sedin's empty-netter in the final minute put it away. For a team that had given up 23 goals in the previous four games that is, if nothing else, a baby step. Unfortunately for the Oilers on a night where they finally gave themselves a chance to win defensively, the offense was completely non-existent. That's what happens when you're a bad team. If it's not one thing, it's something else.

The Flames fell into a 3-0 hole in Columbus and nearly completed a comeback in the third period but ended up falling just short by hitting the post late in the third period of a 3-2 loss.

Even though the Sabres only lost 1-0 to Florida, this game was another one-sided contest where the Sabres just looked completely outclassed. Had it not been for Jhonas Enroth playing a tremendous game in net this would have been a blowout.

Speaking of blowouts, the Maple Leafs had no answer for Henrik Zetterberg on Friday as he assisted on all four of Detroit’s goals, including three primary assists.

And finally, in the late game, the Anaheim Ducks not only were the first team to score a goal against Minnesota this season, they ended up putting two behind Darcy Kuemper to hand the Wild their first lost of the season.

All the NHL Scores

Panthers 1, Sabres 0

Blue Jackets 3, Flames 2

Red Wings 4, Maple Leafs 1

Predators 2, Jets 0

Canucks 2, Oilers 0

Ducks 2, Wild 1

Three Things We Learned

1. Maple Leafs fans are going to run out of jerseys this season. Seriously, we’re only five games into the season, and the Maple Leafs are still only 2-3, and we’ve already seen our second Maple Leafs jersey thrown on the ice in a form of protest. Tough times in Toronto.

2. James Neal gets on the board. The Predators improved to 3-0-1 on the season and have recorded seven of a possible eight points in the standings thanks to their 2-0 shutout win over the Winnipeg Jets on Friday. The win featured a goal from Nashville's big offseason acquisition as he potted his first goal as a member of the team to help clinch the win.

3. It is possible to score against the Minnesota Wild. They extended their shutout streak to eight periods to open the season, but Andrew Cogliano's shorthanded goal in the third period finally snapped it. Corey Perry added another goal six minutes later to help lead the Ducks to a 2-1 win. In a one-goal game, that Jason Pominville miss in the second periodturned out to be a pretty big play.

Impact Moment

Henrik Zetterberg was a one-man wrecking crew for the Detroit Red Wings, and his no-look pass to set up Johan Franzen was one of the finer players we've seen so far this season. It came just before Franzen had to leave the game with a lower body injury. He scored a pair of goals in the win.

Stat of the Night

Nick Bjugstad played 14 minutes for the Florida Panthers on Friday and during that time the Panthers attempted 24 shot attempts. The Buffalo Sabres attempted ... zero. Not one single shot attempt. Not a goal. Not a shot that was stopped. Not a shot that was blocked. Not even a shot that missed the net. Zero. That means Bjugstad finished the night with a plus-24 Corsi, which makes him already the 11th different player this season to finish a game against Buffalo as a plus-20 or better in Corsi (including three different Panthers on Friday). So, yeah, Buffalo is still pretty bad. On the plus side, Friday was the first time all season that Buffalo held a team to fewer than 74 total shot attempts. Florida managed "only" 64.