The Oilers look to take command of the series in Game 5 vs. the Kings on Tuesday at Crypto.com Arena
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The Edmonton Oilers will try to take the lead in their first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings with a road victory at Crypto.com Arena in Game 5 on Tuesday night.
You can watch the game on Sportsnet at 8:00 p.m. MDT or listen live on the Oilers Radio Network, including 630 CHED.
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The Oilers even the series with Draisaitl & Bouchard’s heroics
LOS ANGELES, CA – Unshakeable, unflappable, and unwavering.
These are your Edmonton Oilers, and as far as they’re concerned, they’ve only just begun.
“We got a strong belief in here,” Oilers captain Connor McDavid said post-game on Sunday night following his team’s incredible 4-3 overtime victory over the Kings at Rogers Place.
“We have a strong belief that we’re never out,” he continued. “People keep doubting us, and we keep putting ourselves in bad spots, but we’re digging our way out trying to find ways to win games. Obviously, we found a way. Not the recipe to success, but I’m proud of everyone and how we found a way.”
The Oilers will be cruising back to Los Angeles for Game 5 against the Kings on Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena believing they can be the first team this first-round series to win on the road, having just evened things up at two games apiece by winning Games 3 & 4 at home on the back of separate third-period comebacks.
Edmonton claimed a 4-3 victory in overtime on Sunday that was made possible by Evan Bouchard’s late equalizer before it was solidified on the power play by Leon Draisaitl with 1:42 left in sudden death, capping off a dramatic and exciting win for the Blue & Orange that pulled them back from a 2-0 series deficit.
If they can get the job done on the road on Tuesday night – which they know they can – the Oilers can return home to Oil Country for Game 6 at Rogers Place on Thursday with the chance to end the series in front of their own fans, who were a big part of Edmonton’s late-game heroics by willing the team to victory.
And after picking up two confidence-boosting wins at home, punctuated by their Game 4 triumph, you know the players will be ready. So will the fans back home, who’ll be flooding to ICE District and Rogers Place to watch their team hopefully break the deadlock for the road teams in this series.
“That’s fun. That’s what the playoffs are all about – going in and winning a big road game by coming together,” McDavid said. “That’s what special groups do, and obviously, we’re trying to go win a big game in a tough building in an environment that they really thrive in. So it’ll be an uphill battle, but I got nothing but belief in this group.”
Connor speaks after the Oilers 4-3 overtime win over the Kings
Trailing 3-1 to the Kings after two periods in Game 4, Bouchard cued the comeback 7:51 into the frame on a lucky bounce off the leg of Drew Doughty before he made the clutch intervention on Quinton Byfield’s potential clearance and scored the tying goal on a one-timer with 29 seconds left in regulation.
“I think it’s the ‘no quit’ belief we have in here,” Bouchard added. “We were keeping things simple. We were playing fast, getting in on the forecheck, and we went to work in the third period.”
Edmonton was dominant in overtime, outshooting the Kings 18-7 with their ‘never say die’ attitude that led McDavid drawing a tripping penalty in the final three minutes of the extra period – ultimately resulting in Draisaitl’s power-play winner that came on the third effort after McDavid deflected Nugent-Hopkins’ low pass towards the crease from the left side of the Kings’ net.
“That’s our identity in here. We’ve built that years ago, that that’s a mentality that we have that we’re never going to quit no matter what,” Draisaitl said. “Obviously, we’ve shown that in the series so far. Maybe a little bit too much. We’ve got to find a way to play with the lead, and play that type of game as well, because we’re good at that and we need to prove that and show that.
“It shows a lot of character and we can be really proud of that, but you don’t want to do that every night.”
The Oilers have been finding their rhythm in this series, but know they need to extrapolate their third-period effort over a full 60 minutes starting on Tuesday night in Game 5, because it isn’t a recipe for success if you’re going to go far in the playoffs.
Leon & Evan speak following Sunday’s 4-3 OT win over the Kings
“I think ultimately, the difference is we’re showing a little more urgency later in games when we’ve needed it,” Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said on Monday before the team’s flight to Los Angeles. “So we gotta balance playing with that urgency but not making mistakes, and I think we’ve been a little too cautious to start games, which have allowed us not have that same offensive play as we have in the second half of games.
“But certainly, we need to not get down early in games because you can’t always make those comebacks. We’ve been very fortunate to do it a couple times, but let’s start in LA especially in their building with how well they play there. We’ll need to have to have a very strong start.”
Draisaitl posted a goal and three assists in Game 4 to extend his playoff point streak against the Kings to 18 games, and Bouchard recorded two goals for the second straight game to become the fourth defenceman in NHL history to score multiple times in back-to-back contests.
You can’t forget about Corey Perry either, who tallied his second of the playoffs in the second period to make it 2-1 by controlling the puck in mid-air and beating Darcy Kuemper with his second touch before it puck even touched the ice. The veteran 39-year-old continues to play beyond his years by having the ability to excel anywhere from a fourth-line role to top-six duties alongside Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl, who said they love to play with him.
To Draisaitl, his fellow former Hart Memorial Trophy-winner makes it happen with his knack for scoring around the net and incredible game sense.
“I mean, what can you say? He’s just elite,” Draisaitl added. “He’s nearly 40 years old and he has an impact on every single game. Like, it’s incredible. He’s one of the smartest hockey players that I’ve ever seen. He’s so unique in the way he thinks and plays the game that I honestly feel like he could play until he’s 50 just because of his brain. We’ll see if the boots keep up there, but he’s just a gamer. He just knows how to play the game.”
Throughout the roster, everyone’s having an impact after they were short-staffed entering the playoffs because of injuries, but after the impending return of Troy Stecher, the only player left on the shelf for the Oilers will be defenceman Mattias Ekholm.
Kris speaks with members of the media in Edmonton on Monday
“We’re able to depend on a lot of guys,” Knoblauch said. “I wasn’t sure what I was going to get out from certain guys and how long it was going to take to get them up and running and playing well. It’s hard coming back from injuries, especially when you’ve been out for such a long period of time. Evander Kane, John Klingberg, Trent Frederic and numerous other guys have come back from injuries, but they’ve been long out for a long time. It takes a while to get going, especially the bigger guys.
“Not only finding their game is important, but also finding their game and how it fits within our game, and who they’re going to play with and who’s going to complement who. But we’re starting to see some things right now hopefully, we can build on some momentum.”
Even defenceman Ty Emberson, who didn’t see the ice in the last two periods, is heavily relied upon for his role as a shutdown D and penalty killer, but his ice time diminished later in the game as the Oilers went with the more offensive options chasing an equalizer and eventually, the winning goal in overtime.
The Kings played nine forwards and four defenceman in the final period plus overtime, and the Oilers were able to exploit those matchups on home ice. But on the road, they’ll have to be more cognizant of those matchups and finding more ways to unlock their offensive players without the last change.
“We’re going to find some things that we feel comfortable with in those matchups and who can go against who,” Knoblauch said. “With how we finished with the four lines that we had, certainly we feel comfortable with any four of our lines playing against any one of theirs, so it’s not that we feel that we have to protect anybody, but I guess it’d be more of ‘how can we free up our offensive guys?’
“It’s going to be a big part of the game. We’re going to have to face it. We can’t hide away from it, but maybe we can get a few more shifts away from what the [Kings] want.”
