GDB +1.0: Finally: Playoffs
By Jason Gregor
7 years agoAfter the disappointing loss in game seven of the Stanley Cup Final, even the most pessimistic fan wouldn’t have predicted it would take almost eleven years before the Oilers returned to the playoffs.
But it happened.
And it was painful.
Last night I emceed the Minerva Foundation’s 40th annual playoff draft and throughout the night all the gentlemen I spoke with were giddy with excitement about tonight. They, like you, suffered through the past ten years. Many season ticket holders have spent over $100,000 and suite holders spent over $1 million supporting the Oilers. You diehard fans watched over 50,000 minutes of NHL hockey without a glimpse of the playoffs.
That ends tonight. I hope you enjoy it.
The excitement in and around Edmonton for tonight’s game is almost indescribable. “This is what you dream of as a kid,” beamed Oscar Klefbom this morning. The Oilers defenceman will play his first NHL playoff game and his parents and grandparents will be watching it live at 4 a.m in Sweden. The players couldn’t hide their excitement, nor should they. Too often we think of professional sports as only a business and rarely do we see the fun side of it. It is still just a game, and as Milan Lucic stated numerous times this morning, “This is fun.”
Every Oilers fan is counting down the minutes to puck drop. Your kids will get to stay up a bit later to watch the game. Young adults aged 18-28 will go to the bar and watch an Oilers playoff game for the first time. Many of you will be there two or three hours before puck drop. At work, everyone, even the non-sports fan, is talking about the game.
Edmonton is a great sports town, and the fans are extremely loyal (arguably too loyal over the past ten years), but tonight all the pain and suffering of the past decade will be forgotten.
It is a new era in Edmonton, and I suspect it will be a long time before an Oilers fan takes the playoffs for granted. You miss this feeling. You miss the nervous anticipation. You’ve likely forgotten how loud you will cheer, how stressed out you will get in a tie game and how much fun you will have being a fan. You will high-five strangers and smile more often. It is very unique to watch a fanbase become united at playoff time.
Oilersnation: welcome to the playoffs. Buckle up. You could be in for one hell of a a ride.
LINEUP
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 Patrick Maroon |  Connor McDavid |  Leon Draisaitl |
 Milan Lucic |  Ryan Nugent-Hopkins |  Jordan Eberle |
 Drake Caggiula |  Mark Letestu |  Zack Kassian |
 Benoit Pouliot |  David Desharnais |  Iiro Pakarinen |
| Defensive Pairings | |
|---|---|
 Oscar Klefbom |  Adam Larsson |
 Andrej Sekera |  Kris Russell |
 Darnell Nurse |  Eric Gryba |
| Goalies |
|---|
 Cam Talbot |
It is playoff time so Todd McLellan wouldn’t divulge his complete lineup. He said we can find out in warmup, but based on yesterday’s lines I expect Eric Gryba and Darnell Nurse to be the Oilers third pair and for Iiro Pakarinen to skate on a line with Benoit Pouliot and David Desharnais.
Sharks
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 Melker Karlsson |  Logan Couture |  Joe Pavelski |
 Joonas Donskoi |  Patrick Marleau |  Joel Ward |
 Jannik Hansen |  Tomas Hertl |  Mikkel Boedker |
 Timo Meier |  Chris Tierney |  Marcus Sorensen |
| Defensive Pairings | |
|---|---|
 Paul Martin |  Brent Burns |
 Marc-Edouard Vlasic |  Justin Braun |
 Brenden Dillon |  David Schlemko |
| Goalies |
|---|
 Martin Jones |
Joe Thornton skated this morning, and he’ll be a game time decision. If he plays, he’ll be much less than 100%. Peter Deboer said Thornton will make the decision if he is good enough to contribute, and if he believes he is then he’ll be in the lineup. I’d expect Logan Couture to play. Yesterday he was skating with Joe Pavelski and Melker Karlsson.
Lineups courtesy of DailyFaceoff.com
QUICK HITS
- The Oilers and Sharks have met once before in the playoffs, with the Oilers winning in six games in 2006. They lost the first two games in San Jose, but won the next four. Patrick Marleau and Thornton are the only players who played in that series. They each had six points.
- Matt Hendricks is the only current Oilers who was playing pro hockey in 2006. He made his pro debut in the ECHL in 2004/2005 and in 2005/2006 he played 56 games with Rochester in the AHL. Benoit Pouliot and Andrej Sekera had been drafted, but both were 19 years old and playing major junior. No other Oilers were involved with the NHL yet. Connor McDavid was nine years old.
- Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Jordan Eberle, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Oscar Klefbom, Darnell Nurse, Drake Caggiula and Iiro Pakarinen will play their first NHL playoff game tonight. Their excitement was apparent, and Lucic, who will play his 102nd playoff game said, “I feel their energy and I’m just as excited as them. It is great to have that excited energy in the room.”
- The suggestion the Oilers are a one-man team because McDavid was in on 41% of their goals this season doesn’t make sense to me. Last season Patrick Kane led the NHL with 106 points. He was in on 45% of the Hawks goals. In 2014 Sidney Crosby led the league with 104 points and was in on 43% of the Penguins 217 goals. I don’t recall people calling them a one-line team. McDavid’s points % is lower than both of those two. The Oilers are far from a one player, or a one line team.
- In the 1980s when the Oilers were considered one of the greatest teams in NHL history, Wayne Gretzky was in on way more than 41% of the goals. Between 1982-1987 he scored 1219 points. In those six seasons the Oilers scored 2,486 goals. He was in on 49% of their goals during the six most productive seasons from one team in NHL history. When you have a great player they will be heavily involved in the offence, but it doesn’t make you a one-line team.
- If Thornton doesn’t play, Patrick Marleau will play centre, and he isn’t as effective there. The Oilers need to try and exploit him down the middle. He is still a good player, but after speaking with San Jose reporters this morning, the feeling is Marleau is better when he plays the wing.
- The Oilers were 3-1-1 versus the Sharks this season. They won the last three meetings, outscoring the Sharks 11-5. The Sharks only scored one PP goal in 16 chances (6.2%). The Oilers were three for 18, but scored three goals in the past three games. The Oilers PP has been very outstanding since February 1st, going 22 for 85 (25.8%). In their past 14 games when they won 12, the PP is 15 of 50 (30%). If the PP stays hot the Oilers should win the series.
- Their PK has rebounded lately as well. It is 86.1% in the past 14 games and they’ve only allowed a PP goal in three of those contests. The Sharks PP was surprisingly quiet this season at 16.7%, 25th in the NHL. Of all 16 playoff teams the Sharks PP is the worst. Their PP has been very good in previous years, so the Oilers need to stay disciplined, but this season the Sharks haven’t been able to get on track on the man advantage.
- McDavid and Draisailt combined for 46 points in the last 14 games. They are on fire and they will get a heavy dose of Vlasic/Braun tonight. As good as Vlasic is, it is still a matchup that favours the Oilers. Milan Lucic and Jordan Eberle have combined for 19 goals in the past 20 games. They have heated up at the right time and Eberle looks like he’s finally regained his offensive confidence. The recent play of the Olers second line gives them a big advantage over the Sharks second unit, especially if Thornton is out.
TONIGHT…
GAME DAY PREDICTION: The Oilers pick up their first playoff win since a 4-0 shutout over Carolina on June 17th, 2006.
OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: The arena will be rocking. Fans will start chants 45 minutes before puck drop. McDavid continues his point streak.
NOT-SO-OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Caggiula scores his first playoff goal in his first playoff game.
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