The Kings went into the series confident they could get past Edmonton on their fourth try. One reason for that was that they had home-ice advantage for the first time after finishing second in the Pacific Division, four points ahead of the Oilers.
And after winning 6-5 in Game 1 and 6-2 in Game 2, Los Angeles had Edmonton on the ropes in Game 3, leading 4-3 entering the third period.
Yet, as they've demonstrated so often in the past, the Oilers found a way to battle back, scoring four unanswered goals for a 7-4 win. Two nights later, Edmonton repeated its performance, tying Game 4 with two goals in the third period before Leon Draisaitl scored at 18:18 of overtime to give it a 4-3 win.
The Oilers then dominated in Game 5, a 3-1 win back in Los Angeles, and did just enough on Thursday to avoid a return trip to California for a deciding seventh game.
“We defended better. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but we defended better than we did in the first two games,” Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse said. “Also, too, with our special teams, our special teams stepped up in big ways and in big moments. Our power play and PK, too, some of that came down to eliminating opportunities against. I think we gave them a few too many power plays in those first two games, and we were able to settle our game down and build off those big moments.”
Health played a factor as well.
The Oilers were missing a number of injured players toward the end of the regular season, some of whom did not return until the playoffs began.
Along with Draisaitl and McDavid, the list of players who missed time included forwards Zach Hyman, Evander Kane and Trent Frederic, and defensemen Jake Walman and John Klingberg. All made contributions against the Kings and got better as the series went along.
“I think you saw early in the series we just looked a step behind,” McDavid said. “Give them credit, too, they were ready to roll. They wanted it to be different. They were ready those first two games. They played great, but guys got their legs under them, a little bit of momentum.
“Those Games 3 and 4, I can’t say how big those were. You go down 3-1, 3-0 or whatever it is, it’s tough to dig your way out, but we just found our way in those ones and rode the momentum.”
Depth proved to be a difference as well.
Los Angeles played predominately with three lines and four defensemen in an attempt to keep McDavid and Draisaitl in check.
Edmonton, meanwhile, rolled four lines and utilized all six defensemen. It also used two goalies, with Calvin Pickard replacing Stuart Skinner in Game 3.
It was Edmonton’s third line, though, that did most of the damage in Game 6. Connor Brown had a goal and two assists, Frederic scored his first goal of the series and had an assist, and Adam Henrique chipped in a goal as well.
“There’s no quit in that team. There’s a high sense of belief that we’re never out of a game, we’re never out of a series,” Brown said. “We showed that last year and we showed that this year.
“I think in Game 4 overtime we really started to jell, and we’ve been building off it ever since. I think the big boy [Frederic] is really starting to find his game. He’s got soft hands, a big fella, and [Henrique], I love playing with him. There’s something good there, we just have to keep building on it.”
Now the Oilers will have to turn the page and get ready for another tough opponent in the Golden Knights, who eliminated the Minnesota Wild in six games with a 3-2 win on Thursday.
The only time the two teams have met in the Stanley Cup Playoffs was in 2023, when Vegas defeated Edmonton in six games in the second round en route to winning the Stanley Cup.
“I’m looking forward to it, they’re a great team,” McDavid said. “Obviously, they’ve won. They’re solid through the back end, solid through the middle of the rink, are deep. There’s eight teams left, they’re all good, they’re left for a reason. We got our work cut out for us, but we’ll be ready to go.”
