EDMONTON — Social media indicated that a trending topic across Canada on Monday circled around top players who show up in big games. We would augment that it was a topic that ceased to exist West of about Dryden, Ont.
Here in Edmonton, the big guys showing up is the least of the Oilers’ problems, led by Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid who have 18 goals and 32 points between them in just eight post-season games.
Below them, Evan Bouchard (3-11-14), Zach Hyman (2-7-9), Evander Kane (3-1-4) and even the goal-less Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (six assists) have provided enough offence to keep these Oilers as the highest scoring team in the playoffs, averaging 4.25 goals per game.
“We’ve got a lot of gamers on this team,” said Draisaitl. “A lot of guys who like these moments, who like to step up and help our team win. It's a collective effort, but individually we’ve got some gamers on this team that like these moments. Who enjoy them and thrive in them.”
Meanwhile, two key offensive players for the Vegas Golden Knights — Reilly Smith (four assists) and Jonathan Marchessault (two assists) — who are still in search of their first playoff goal through seven games.
“Haven’t scored at all,” said Vegas head coach Bruce Cassidy when asked about those two. “We have still won five games out of seven, so we feel that we have enough guys in the locker room that they can score goals for us.”
The Golden Knights have to figure out how to stop an Oilers power play that is operating at 56 per cent, but five-on-five they’ve outscored the Oilers 6-3 through two games.
“So we're doing something right five-on-five,” said stellar defenceman Alex Pietrangelo.
How does an offensive, score-off-the-rush team like Vegas deal with an Oilers team that does all of those things — but perhaps does them better?
“Stick to your game, but do it better — while trying to adjust to what the other team does,” Pietrangelo said. “We're not going to completely change the way we play in the playoffs. There’s a reason why we got here, and there's a reason why they got here.
“So you do what you have done all year, but you’ve just got to find a way to do it better and make adjustments to them as you go.”
As for the big boys showing up and being productive," Kane explained, “If you don't elevate your game in the playoffs, you're not going to go very far.”
Special, Special Teams
As the post-season goes on, traditionally, special teams numbers start to even out.
As of Monday morning, the second-through-fourth-place power plays all belonged to teams who were eliminated in Round 1: Winnipeg, Boston and L.A. Meanwhile, most everyone else is settling into that 25 per cent zone that is normal for a high functioning power play.
Except for Edmonton’s, which is the Golden Knights’ problem now.
“We’ve got to do a better job. That's the reality of it,” Pietrangelo said. “In this room we all know that. We’ll be better tonight.”
Is 56 per cent sustainable?
“Probably not,” Draisaitl said, “but we've been doing it for eight games now. There's going to be some ups and downs on our power play — we know that — but we try to stay as consistent as we can. Try to keep it at a high percentage.”
No team has ever finished a post-season at 56 per cent since the NHL began tracking power plays in the 1977-78 season. The best number posted by a team that played 12 or more games was 37.8 per cent, by the 1980-81 New York Islanders.
In and Out
The lineups don’t look to change much for Game 3, other than perhaps Mattias Janmark coming in for the Oilers after taking the full morning skate.
It will be Stuart Skinner in goal versus Laurent Brossoit, who was relieved after 40 minutes in Game 2. Whether McDavid and Draisaitl play together on the same line or are separated is fluid, with Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft showing a propensity to have his lines in the blender much of the time.
As the head coach of a team that gave up a goal just 2:21 into Game 2 — and trailed 3-0 by the 11:11 mark — Cassidy was clear on what he is hoping to see tonight.
“We need to get into the fight right away,” he said. “Bring your emotion, in terms of puck battles, winning your races, winning the slot battle, net front… All those things — that's when our emotion needs to be there for us. Not when we fall behind.”
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