Mattias Ekholm reveals he made an intermission speech to wake up the Oilers

The Oilers had a slow start to their game against the Sabres last night, and during the first period intermission, Mattias Ekholm woke up the team with a speech.

Mattias Ekholm has fit in seamlessly with the Oilers, becoming one of their best defenceman and one of the best trades the team has made in recent memory. Last night he had one of his best games as an Oiler yet, both on and off the ice. The Oilers started slow and gave up the first two goals of the game, and headed into the first intermission trailing a team they should easily beat. Ekholm revealed in a post-game interview that he took that time to speak to the team.


Ekholm noted that the team wasn't satisfied with their game, and that Ekholm initiated a «chat» about it during the intermission. Ekholm said that the team spoke about increasing their intensity and urgency, but other than that the content of the discussion would stay in the room. After the first period the Oilers dialled it up in the second, and then came out like an unstoppable force in the third.



Ekholm's arrival to the Oilers made them such a stronger team all around. He plays a dominant two-way game, has mentored the development of Evan Bouchard, and brings a maturity and professionalism to the locker room that is all about winning. Last night, from his incredible on ice performance as well as his leadership, Ekholm proved why he's so valuable to this team.