The route taken to this point was unique, but the visiting Edmonton Oilers are not in unfamiliar territory heading into Game 2 of their Western Conference first-round series with the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday.
Sure, the 6-5 Los Angeles victory in the series opener was a roller coaster ride for the ages, but the result is very familiar. Edmonton lost the first game in two of the three series meetings between these clubs in this run of four consecutive Stanley Cup playoff first-round clashes.
The Oilers responded to win both of those series in which they trailed, so there is no panic from the club that is looking to beat the Kings for the fourth consecutive year.
“We’ve been in this position a ton of times and we know what to expect,” Edmonton goaltender Stuart Skinner said. “We gotta be patient, we gotta be strong defensively, being able to play that chess match. It’s a tough building to win in, but we’ve done it before, we know how to do it.”
The teams certainly have a whale of a first game to replicate for its entertainment value. The Kings staked a 4-0 lead before the end of the second period and even had a 5-2 edge seven minutes into the third period.
But the Oilers roared back and tied the clash with 88 seconds remaining in regulation, only to see Kings forward Phillip Danault score the winner with 42 seconds on the clock.
Sure it was a gut punch to lose after such a comeback, but the Oilers do not appear flustered.
“There’s highs and lows throughout the course of a series, throughout the course of a game,” Edmonton captain Connor McDavid said. “There’s going to be momentum swings.”
In each of the past three years, the series has ended up tied 1-1, a trend the Kings will look to change before they head to Edmonton for the third and fourth games.
The way they managed to pull off the victory just as it appeared disaster was nearing certainly is a boost for the Kings. Seeing how the Oilers can explode offensively when the Kings are not strong defensively is also a great lesson to receive in a victory.
“Obviously we’ve got to do better job of closing that game out, but a win’s a win and we’ll take that, we’ll enjoy it and we’ll move on,” Los Angeles forward Quinton Byfield said. “This happened not last year but the year before. We had a (big lead) and they came back on us and ended up winning that game. No lead is safe in playoffs.”
The Kings can also take solace in how well they controlled the game through the first two periods. Edmonton had trouble breaking through the Los Angeles defenders, especially in the neutral zone, managing only six shots on net through the clash’s midway point, while the Kings were generating all kinds of chances.
Moreover, the Kings were able to win the special teams battle, which was a big issue the other way in those previous series.
“I would say just a good start,” Kings coach Jim Hiller said. “You know, we didn’t like exactly how it ended. We had a chance, more than one chance, to put the puck into the empty net and end the game in a less dramatic fashion, which is really what we wanted, but it’s hockey.”
The Oilers are hoping this series marks the return of forward Evander Kane, who has missed the entire season following surgery last September to repair two torn hip adductor muscles, two hernias and two torn lower abdominal muscles. The 33-year-old also had arthroscopic knee surgery on Jan. 9.
Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said Tuesday that he expects Kane to play in this series, though Game 2 would be “a little premature” as the forward has not been cleared by medical staff. Knoblauch also said that 32-year-old defenseman John Klingberg (lower-body injury), who has not played since March 27, could be in the lineup as soon as Wednesday.
–Field Level Media
