LAS VEGAS — It’s still early days, just five wins into a 16-win run needed to win a Stanley Cup.
But we are seeing some things we knew we’d need to see from these Edmonton Oilers to even be whispering about the possibility of another visit to the Final. Things that weren’t so evident even 15 days ago, when the Oilers limped home from Los Angeles down 0-2 in their Rd.1 series with the Kings.
“I guess we realized it’s playoff time. There’s no time to really screw around,” said defenceman Evan Bouchard. “You lose, you go home at some point.”
On a team that’s playing its best hockey of the season at the most crucial moment, Bouchard has also found the peak of his game. His offensive game is impeccable, and defensively, Bouchard has stepped up his game big-time.
“For two years in a row,” points out head coach Kris Knoblauch, referring to Bouchard’s playoff run a year ago when he had 32 points in 25 games, averaging 25 minutes per night. “You want guys bringing their best games when it matters the most. The guys who score when the game is 5-1, that 5-2 or 6-1 goal isn’t really important. You want the guys who like this time of the season.
“Bouchard, especially right now, where we’ve needed him to elevate his game with (Mattias) Ekholm being away, we’ve relied on him for a lot more minutes. You need that from him.”
It’s crazy to think that only one defenceman in NHL history — the great Bobby Orr — has averaged more points per playoff game (1.24) than Bouchard’s 1.12, and Bouchard has the most playoff goals by a blue liner over the past four springs with 17.
But it’s his defensive game that has become quiet and effective, with the aggression and attentiveness that were lacking during the regular season on display every night of late.
It’s all part of the big goal he said.
“We know what we have in this room,” said the pending RFA. “It doesn’t come up too often that you get a championship team, so you’ve gotta take advantage of it. We’ve still got that feeling from last year. We want to get back to where we were, and I think we’re on track to doing that.
“We’ve just got to keep playing the way that we can, and take it one step at a time.”
A chance to go ahead 2-0 in this series is something the Oilers aren’t used to.
“It’s kind of new for us. We don’t usually find ourselves in this spot,” Connor McDavid said. “Big one (tonight). Really, really big. I expect Vegas to raise their level, and we need to match that if not be more desperate than them. It would be huge to come away here with two (wins).”
In forging five straight comebacks, an NHL playoff record, the Oilers have averaged 4.8 goals per game, while surrendering 2.8. That’s basically 5-3 hockey — a far cry from what we usually see when play clamps down in the post-season.
But Edmonton is outshooting teams, on average, 38-27 over that stretch. They’re known as a volume shooting team, so that means they have the puck more than their opponent. Always a good sign.
This is the first six-game stretch all season long where the Oilers have iced the same 20-man lineup. Here’s how the teams will look:
Draisaitl – McDavid – Perry
Kane – RNH – Hyman
Frederic – Henrique – Brown
Podkolzin – Janmark – Arvidsson
Nurse – Bouchard
Walman – Klingberg
Kulak – Emberson
Vegas’ top defenceman, Alex Pietrangelo, took the morning skate after missing Game 1 due to illness. He’ll be a game-time decision, according to head coach Bruce Cassidy.
Barbashev-Eichel-Stone
Saad-Hertl-Olofsson
Howden-Karlsson-Smith
Pearson-Roy-Kolesar
McNabb-Theodore
Hanifin-Whitecloud
Hague-Korczak
Earlier in the season, there were times when the Oilers looked slow.
“Well,” we said, “of course they’re slow. They don’t have Dylan Holloway, Ryan McLeod or Warren Foegele anymore.”
And there is some truth to that.
But in Game 1, it was Vegas that looked like the slower club, and the Oilers who were vastly the quicker team. So, what happened?
“Our team doesn’t get enough credit for being fast,” said Knoblauch. “It’s not necessarily having burners who (going) up and down the ice. It’s just more of a team mentality … playing really fast with our breakouts, neutral zone transition, transitioning very quickly defensively.
“The fastest speed element you have is thinking. Knowing where the play is going to be, and being in the right position to close time and space. One guy can’t do that. It’s more of a team mentality.”
• The Oilers are 23-3 all-time in best-of-seven series when leading 1-0. However, Edmonton is 2-7 in best-of-seven playoff Game 2’s after winning Game 1, since 1991.
• The Golden Knights are 4-2 in best-of-seven series when trailing 1-0. Vegas’ loss in Game 1 marked the first time in franchise history they lost a home playoff game when leading in the 3rd period. They were 17-0 all-time in those situations.
• Zach Hyman leads the Stanley Cup Playoffs with 49 hits. During the regular season he had 59 hits in 73 games, good for 370th on the NHL list.
• Corey Perry’s next playoff goal will tie Luc Robitaille, Mike Modano, Guy Lafleur & Bernie Geoffrion for the 38th-most in NHL history. His goal in Game 1 was his eighth goal from five feet or fewer away from the net this season, tying Hyman for the most in the NHL.
