BLOG: Brown feeling back up to speed

EDMONTON, AB – Things are looking like they’re starting to turn around for Oilers winger Connor Brown.

“We're three weeks in here, but I feel better and better,” Brown said following Tuesday’s practice. “After three weeks, if you told me I’d feel the way I do physically, I would be very happy. So, a lot of positives there.”

The 29-year-old is feeling back up to speed after being a step behind his teammates and the opposition in his first handful of games with the Oilers when working his way back to full strength from a torn ACL he suffered at the beginning of last season with the Washington Capitals.

With the first month of regular-season action wrapping up for the OIlers this past Sunday with the 2023 Heritage Classic at Commonwealth Stadium, Brown is seeing his game round together on both sides of the puck despite a lack of any offensive returns so far.

“My speed has really come back here over the last week or so and I definitely have a lot of jump, and it's turned into generating some chances,” Brown said.

“It's like anything – when you get one to go, then you start feeling a little bit better in the slot and the scoring areas. We're early in the season, but physically, I feel great. Defensively, I feel strong too. I thought we'd been doing a pretty good job on the penalty kill, so I think the offence is going to come here.”

Brown has yet to post a point through eight games this season, but the winger has felt progress as he’s garnered more reps during practice and more ice time in games after accruing 15:15, 18:49 and 15:19 in time on ice over the last three contests for the Blue & Orange.

Additionally, the Toronto, Ont. product has played a special teams role on the club’s second penalty-kill unit, where he’s played alongside his linemate Ryan McLeod.

Brown’s underlying metrics have been strong in the early going with a 64.37 CF% (shot attempt differential while at even strength) and 57.89 GF% (goals for percentage), as per Natural Stat Trick. With a low PDO (shooting percentage plus save percentage) of 87.9, the numbers suggest that there’s positive regression coming for the forward who’s been able to eclipse the 20-goal mark twice in his career with the Toronto Maple Leafs (2017) and Ottawa Senators (2019).

Head Coach Jay Woodcroft described Brown after Tuesday’s practice as being “around it” near their opponents’ net, which has been a product of his increased physical and mental confidence after coming off almost a full year on the sidelines following major knee surgery.

If the winger continues to play the way he has away from the puck, it’s only a matter of time before he starts pouring them into the net.

“He's found himself in some chances around the blue paint. It hasn't gone in for him, he's working his way through that, but he's around it,” Woodcroft said. “He's finding himself in more and more of those opportunities, while at the same time, not taking unnecessary risks that lead to offensive chances going the other way. So that's a positive for him. He's working through it. 

“He's a proud guy. He doesn't like to be sitting at zero goals for, but he's trying to do it the right way and he knows that for him to find success. He's probably going to have to be around that mud puddle in front of the net.”

The bench boss is hoping to see more offence come from the club’s bottom six, with Derek Ryan being the only bottom-six forward to have recorded a point in the Oilers opening eight games.

Brown’s third line with Ryan McLeod and Dylan Holloway has yet to be able to turn their hard work into points, but has to continue impacting the game in different ways as they search for offence.

“We want to be a team that comes at groups in waves, so we want to maintain a level of momentum in terms of stacking a good shift on top of a good shift,” he said. “Part of that requires some contributions from unusual sources or not typical sources – those players in our bottom six.

“It can be generating momentum, it can come down to big finish checks, it can be a won faceoff, it could be contributing on special teams, but certainly finding a way to contribute on the scoreboard is important as well.”