BLOG: A test of your best

EDMONTON, AB - The Edmonton Oilers have been in this spot before up 2-1 in the series and coming off a confident victory.
But after the club was stymied in their pursuit of a commanding hold over their first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings in the last Game 4 they played, their entire focus and preparation now is on preventing that mistake from repeating itself in this second-round Battle of Alberta.
"I think for us as a coaching staff, we constantly assign relevance to certain things," Head Coach Jay Woodcroft said. "For us, our important pieces of day-to-day are on gearing our team up to play our best game tomorrow. We spent a lot of time thinking about the message we're sending to our players. We had a good meeting and we'll be ready."
The Blue & Orange began Game 3 of this series on Sunday night in high gear, then shifted to overdrive in the second period.
The opening 20 minutes concluded with no goals from either side, but the Oilers had the ice tilted in the direction of the Flames crease for the majority of the period -- exemplified in their 21-7 shot advantage at the first intermission from a good start in front of their home fans at Rogers Place.
The middle frame brought the same desire from Edmonton, but along with that determination came the goals to show for it. Evander Kane potted a natural hat-trick in six minutes flat, and Leon Draisaitl set an NHL record for most assists in one playoff period (four). Connor McDavid's hot start to the Stanley Cup Playoffs has reached another scorching level of production after the captain became the first player in NHL history with nine multi-point games in the first 10 games of a playoff (10GP - 6G, 17A) after posting three assists.
Mike Smith absorbed a stampeding run from Milan Lucic in the third period and cleared concussion protocol before returning to the ice to enormous cheers and completing the 4-1 victory with 31 saves.
"I think last night, the way we came out and the way we followed it up on the second period, that was probably as complete of a game we've played," defenceman Tyson Barrie said. "It was a pretty good pace, and you could tell we were flying out there. It was hard work, but I think we were all dialed in and all on the same page doing the right things and doing what was asked of us and at a very high level."

Game 4 against Calgary on Tuesday night returns the Oilers to the very-same scenario they had in Round 1 against the Kings, albeit on home ice, of having the opportunity to take a stranglehold on the series and push their opponent to the brink.
The Oilers missed their mark and suffered two defeats in a row in Game 4 and 5 to fall behind 3-2 in the series, but came through in the final two games with some strong all-around performances at both ends of the ice to win the series in seven games.
Because of that experience, the Oilers players and coaching staff are well-aware of the preparation and effort that will be needed to not make the same mistake they did in Game 4 against the Kings.
"I feel like we should actually be grateful for the last round and kind of the ups and downs of it," Barrie said. "I think it can take teams a full year to learn a lesson like we did last round, and we just know it's far from over and we have a great opportunity in front of us to take a big step and big lead.
"I think the last time we had that opportunity, I would say we weren't really even close to grabbing it, so we know what our game feels like when we're ready, prepared and start on time when we get into that rhythm. We know what that feels like, and we just have to get to that feeling as quick as we can tomorrow."
As a team that's gone through seasons of hardship to learn from their mistakes and arrive at this pivotal point in their second-round series against a provincial rival, the Oilers see themselves as a mature group that's better able to react to the pressure and return to their baseline after wins or losses to best prepare for the next challenge.
"I think we just learned lessons over the last couple of years," Leon Draisaitl said. "A couple of disappointing ends to our seasons, a couple good runs, but I think as you get older and as you grow as a team you just learn how to deal with these ups and downs. I think we're maturing as a team.
"We've obviously got older, we've grown up together, so we're learning that the playoffs are an up and down ride. You go up a game, you go down a game, you go up two games, whatever it is I think we've done a good job of staying even-keeled."

Despite a strong performance in Game 3 from the Oilers, Head Coach Jay Woodcroft still believes there's another level that his side can reach.
"I think our team has a clear understanding of what it takes for us to be successful," he said. "I think we have a clear understanding of what our team identity is, and I've said this before, but I don't think we're anywhere near playing towards our full potential yet."
But as the bench boss has said all through the post-season, the opponent still has its own say in how the series can unfold. Calgary has their own experiences down 2-1 in a series to lean on, having reversed a deficit in the first round to the Dallas Stars. The Flames might believe they're dealing with only one major threat in Connor McDavid, if how their post-game comments are to be interpreted, but the Oilers bench boss is preparing his lineup to put in their best performance and push themselves to within one game of advancing to the next challenge.
"I can't speak to what's happening in the Calgary Flames' coaching office or dressing room. That would be a good question for them," Woodcroft said. "I know for us, we felt we got really good contributions from all 20 that dressed last night. Our focus today is on how the 20 players that we're going to dress in that lineup tomorrow night are going to be ready to play our best game yet."