THE BRIGHT SIDE
- In the dying moments of the first period, @Connor McDavid got his team on the board (2-1) with an end-to-end rush that saw him carve through the Kings’ defence before sniping a wrister past Quick down low. Down by two, this was a massive goal by the captain and he was clearly fired up about it when the puck went in.
- @Kailer Yamamoto tied the game (2-2) with a power play goal after Duncan Keith hit him with a perfect shot-pass that Yamo was able to deflect up and over a flailing Quick.
- @Leon Draisaitl tied the game for the second time (3-3) with a second power play goal after McDavid found him in his office near the faceoff dot with enough time to outwait Quick and rifle a shot past him. The pass may have hit a stick on its way from McDavid to Draisaitl but even that wasn’t enough to stop the magic.
- Can I just say how much I love it when @Zach Hyman grabs the puck in the offensive zone and refuses to give it up? It’s so much fun to watch him do his thing. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen someone work as hard as consistently as Hyman does. Dude is relentless.
- @Darnell Nurse was back! Even though I expected him to play tonight, the way the Oilers were playing mind games with us over the last couple of days had me second guessing myself. Gotta love the playoff gamesmanship.
- You’ve gotta love seeing the Oilers come through with two goals on the power play because they were getting more than their share of chances be they legitimate or not.
- Not to be outdone, the Oilers’ PK came up huge with a quartet of massive kills at key moments of the game.
- At least we won the Corskis after outshooting the Kings by a 39-35 margin.
THE FACE PALMERS
- @Trevor Moore opened the scoring (1-0) with a snipe from the slot after Iafallo found him with a pass he was able to tee off on. I hate to say it but it was a well-executed play by the Kings, and it put the Oilers in a hole.
- Alex Iafallo extended LA’s lead (2-0) after a weird play behind the Oilers goal line that had Smith moving from post to post with the obvious problem being that he got caught in transition, giving what was basically a wide-open cage to shoot at.
- Only 1:19 after Yamamoto tied the game, Brendan Lemieux restored the lead (3-2) with a wrister from the high slot that I’m sure Smith would like to have back. I know the shot came from a tricky spot but… you know. The timing blew.
- @Philip Danault restored the Kings’ lead for a third time (4-3) with a lucky bounce off his after a horrendous Mike Smith giveaway resulted in the Kings getting an array of shots before finally getting the goal.
- The Oilers were way too sloppy in their own zone and it was a bummer to see them coughing the puck up as often as they did to give the Kings more chances than they probably deserved. If they can tighten up some of those jumpy attempts at breakouts and missed passes then they’re going to be fine.
- @Mike Smith was back between the pipes and tasked with giving the Oilers a chance to open the series with a win, and in the early going, it was clear the team would need him because the Kings were shooting from everywhere. Early on, I thought Smith was solid and made a bunch of quality saves that kept the game close, and while I’m sure he would want the Lemieux goal back, he didn’t let the issue derail his concentration. That was until the third period when his horrific giveaway in front of his own net gave the Kings the chance they needed to restore their lead and ultimately win the game. Hell, even Kelly Hrudey thinks he should apologize because of how dumb this was. Smith finished the night with 31 saves and a .886 save%.
- The spreadsheet society offers good news after the Oilers finished with an impressive 47.73 CF% and a 48.30 xGF%.
- I hate to say it but the Oilers won only 49% of the faceoffs. I know, I’m bummed about it too.
SCORING SUMMARY
#GOODCONTENT
Intermission Listening: My podcast brought you the song of the summer.
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— Spooky Baggedmilk 🎃👻 (@jsbmbaggedmilk) April 29, 2022
My heart is beating so fast
— X – Playoff Kennedy (@kennedystrash) May 3, 2022
If I be Oiler I would jus score more than other team instead of other way round
— Oilers Nerd Alert (@OilersNerdAlert) May 3, 2022
You can feel the energy!!! #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/yfNSDLzSqC
— Colin Critch 🇺🇦 (@ColinCritch) May 3, 2022
If Leon Draisaitl doesn’t make your nipples hard then your nipples don’t work
— Aime (@aimeok) May 3, 2022
Jesus Christ this is fun we should try to make the playoffs every year
— Ryan (@IAmByks) May 3, 2022
I am truly sorry. As a Mike Smith I apologize on his behalf.
— Michael (@MASmith_13) May 3, 2022