The Edmonton Oilers play a big game in Los Angeles tonight against the Kings. Did you know the two teams have played eight times in the postseason? There’s some incredible memories involving the two clubs since 1979. Not all of them are fun memories.
THE ATHLETIC!
- New Lowetide: Oilers’ second half spike owes much to Jay Woodcroft’s innovation
- Lowetide: Edmonton Oilers post an incredible March with playoffs in sight
- DNB: The Oilers ‘found a way’ against the Kings
- Lowetide: How many more college players will the Oilers sign this spring?
- Lowetide: Edmonton Oilers at 2018 NHL Draft, making the final call
- DNB: How the Oilers’ playoff path looks rockier after loss to Golden Knights
- Lowetide: Should the Oilers re-sign trade deadline acquisition Nick Bjugstad?
- DNB: Why Edmonton Oilers and their star players believe Pride night is ‘important to celebrate’
- Lowetide: Evander Kane, Zach Hyman and the Oilers’ ideal Connor McDavid line
- DNB: Connor McDavid joins the 60-goal club
- Lowetide: Is the Oilers’ defence deep enough to win the Stanley Cup?
- DNB: What I got wrong: Jack Campbell hasn’t given Oilers a goaltending upgrade
- Lowetide: Stock up or down for every Oilers prospect in the system
- DNB: Oilers’ recent play gives 3 reasons to be optimistic about a long playoff run
- DNB: Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl shows he’s more than Connor McDavid’s sidekick
- Lowetide: What to expect from the Oilers’ 2023 NHL Draft after trading first-round pick
- DNB: Connor McDavid’s importance to the Oilers keeps showing no bounds
- DNB: Why Mattias Ekholm is a big addition for an Oilers team that needs to win now
- Lowetide: Oilers’ mediocre February shows importance of protecting the puck
- Lowetide: Oilers top 20 prospects, winter 2022
WHAT TO EXPECT IN APRIL
- At home to: ANA (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 1-0-0)
- On the road to: LAK, ANA, SJS, COL (Expected 2-2-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- At home to: SJS (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- April prediction: 4-2-0, eight points in six games
- April results: 1-0-0, two points in one game
- March results: 12-2-1, 25 points in 15 games
- February results: 4-3-4, 12 points in 11 games
- January results: 8-2-2, 18 points in 12 games
- December results: 7-6-2, 16 points in 15 games
- November results: 7-7-0, 14 points in 14 games
- October results: 6-3-0, 12 points in 9 games
- Oilers in 2022-23: 45-23-9, 99 points in 77 games
Edmonton has a chance to leap into second place tonight, it’s a big game for home-ice advantage. I think the Vegas Golden Knights win the division, but Game 7 vs LAK in Edmonton is the better plan (should it come to that). Edmonton has a 6-2 record versus Los Angeles in post-season play, but the two losses are pretty famous.
- 1982: The Miracle on Manchester. The series turned in Game 3, and is remembered fondly by Kings fans. Daryl Evans passed into legend that night, while Garry Unger’s penalty is seared in the memory of Oilers fans to this day. Dammit!
- 1985: Oilers made quick work of LAK, Grant Fuhr stopping 99 of 106 shots, Wayne Gretzky and Charlie Huddy with five assists in a 3-0 series romp.
- 1987: Oilers win 4-1, Gretzky with 15 points, Jari Kurri leading in goals (7), Esa Tikkanen had six. LAK scored 20 goals in the five games, Edmonton 32 goals.
- 1989: Kings win 4-3, a wildly disappointing end to a season for Edmonton. Wayne Gretzky posted 13 points, Chris Kontos scored eight goals for Kings. Normand Lacombe went 2-1-3 and Tomas Jonsson was 2-0-2 for Edmonton, Messier leading Edmonton with 12 points. Kelly Hrudey stopped 31 of 34 in the final game.
- 1990: Edmonton swept, with Billy Ranford stopping 127 of 137 shots and the Kid Line having a major impact. Craig Simpson scored four goals.
- 1991: Edmonton won in six games, Craig MacTavish scoring in overtime in Game 6. Esa Tikkanen scored four goals in the series, Martin Gelinas and Anatoli Semenov scoring three each. I thought this time might win it all.
- 1992: Oilers win in six, Billy Ranford outdueling Kelly Hrudey in goal. Some outlier names for Edmonton in this series, Bernie Nicholls scores five, Dave Manson six points, Josef Beranek and Brian Glynn two goals each. Scott Mellanby was in this series.
- 2022: Oilers win in seven games, a classic series. Victory led by Connor McDavid, who scored 4-10-14, Evander Kane’s seven goals and Mike Smith’s .938 save percentage. McDavid impacted the series in all games, the final two a special level.
THE NEW ORIGINALS
I hesitate to overstate this, in all honesty when Leon Draisaitl is in a zone like the one he’s living in now a tree trunk and Festus Haggen could score 30 goals a year playing on his wing. However, Evander Kane and Kailer Yamamoto have performed well with 29, and this goes back some time. Consider the following totals:
- First portion of season: 74 minutes, 6-2 goals, 42 percent expected goals
- Latest deployment (mid-Feb to Apr): 48 minutes, 4-2 goals, 49 percent expected goals
- Overall: 122 minutes, 10-4 goals, 45 percent expected goals
All numbers five-on-five. The goal share far outstrips the expected goals, that happens often with Leon. I don’t know if this is going to be successful in the playoffs, but Draisaitl went 3-2 goals in 32 minutes with Milan Lucic and Anton Slepyshev in the 2017 playoffs. Expected goals? 29 percent.
OTHER LINES
Connor McDavid with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman have played together 161 minutes five-on-five this year. The goal share (14-9, 61 percent) and expected goal share (64 percent) align. The Nick Bjugstadt-Warren Foegele-Mattias Janmark trio are 3-2 goals in 63 minutes, 45 percent expected goals.
TONIGHT
Finishing second in the Pacific gives Edmonton home-ice advantage and that has value against a strong team like the Los Angeles Kings. Watch out for Arthur Kaliyev, he owns a 2.51 pts-60 at five-on-five since March 1. The young man is going to score a lot of goals in his NHL career. He was 1-1-2 with seven shots against Vancouver on the weekend.
LOWETIDE AND JAMIESON
10-2 today, we’ll preview the Oilers-Kings and have a look at the goaltending matchup. More NBA talk, what’s going on with the Blue Jays, and more! 10-1260 text, @Lowetide on twitter. Talk soon!
To all concerned: please forgive my spotty typing. SPoradic arthritis, bad eyes and autocorrect all do funny things! Thank you all for neot mentioning it, I have been a little sensitive about it, and appreciate the discretion. 🙂
Wait, what’s that incredible streak the Kings have been on?
1 GF in the past 2 games v the Oilers?
Summarizing!
Petrov picked a troika of apples in NB’s win which puts them up 2-1 in their series.
Wanner earned his first post-suspension point, an assist in MJ’s victory as they take a 3-0 series lead.
Chiasson assisted on the GTG with less than 30 seconds left to force OT, which the Blades won. S’ toon now trails the series 2-1.
Season series 2-2. Th Oilers have all the momentum, now.
If only TMac had a couple of elite players in their prime, the Kings could be their equal.
The Kings beat the Oilers (badly) when the Oilers were playing their worst hockey of the year. Now both teams are playing their best hockey, and it’s a combined score of 5-1. That’s not nothing.
The only fly in the ointment tonight on the out nof town scoreboard was Vegas dragging it to OT. At least tey left a point on the table vs their weakest opponent in the home stretch…
Out next two are buttuer soft (ANA and SJ). LA’s next two are VEG and COL, Vegas has LA and DAL for next two. I like our chances of creeping even closer heading into the final 2 games for each squad. I could easily see us sweeping our two games, an both LA and Vegas splitting their two next games each. That would take us to April 9 at 105 points, LA 102 (or 103 if Betman loss), and Vegas at 106 (107 if Betman loss).
FInal two games each squad, we get COL and SJ and COL should be home and dry and resting players so I am hoping for min 3 pts and possible sweep for us to get to 108-109 pts. LA gets VAN and ANA, worst case possible sweep so 106. Vegas fwets SEA twice and I hope for a split there to get them to 108-109. All we can do is take care of the teams we fae each night – if LA and DAL this week do us a favor, it will get MUCH eeasier but is going to be great clubhouse stretch either way!
I doubt Colorado is resting anyone with top spot in the conference still up for grabs
Hmmm. To look at FInal stretch for Central, COL has 6 games remaining. This week @SJ, @LA and @ANA. Not exactly a murderer’s row of a road trip, I would not be surprised if they swept this sorry lot. That would give them 104 with 3 games left. DAL has PHI and VEG this weekwould put them at 100-102 pts with three left. MIN has PIT and STL this week, so 100-102 with three left at end of week.
So COL likely to end the week and, with all three team having three lleft apiece, be leading the Central by 2-4 points.
FInal week – COL faces EDM, WPG NAS. DAL faces DET STL STL, MIN faces CHI WPG NAS. Might be tighter than I assumed after all. That final week has DAL facing a much easier final three opponentsand could be crucial…
I stand corrected. Although, if COL has a four point lead going into the final week we could see some effect after all on the COL game.
I like that LA can’t hang with us in physicality now, in addition to speed and skill.
While I enjoyed watching them get dominated, the Kings were playing their 3rd in 4 nights. That definitely contributed to how gassed they were in the 3rd.
Especially when their best players are on the back 9 of their careers.
No shame in that,
Doughty & Kopitar ard Hall of Famers, respect.
Returned the favour of our scheduled loss against them last week. Except we won that one. 🙂
Oilers catch the Stars in goal differential tonight. Our horse was nearly thirty lengths off the lead back around New Year’s and has reeled the leader in coming down the home stretch.
Zac MacEwen played 3:52 total tonight.
1 give away, 2 hits…game breaker alright..
Better than having Lemieux on the Kings. He could have bitten off a lot of fingers in 3:52 of ice time.
Did he take out McDavid? There was a lot of buzz that that was what was going to happen?
I love the way Byfield takes up space in the Kings top six and does absolutely nothing. It’s a thing of beauty to watch.
When push comes to shove, the Kings always back down. For a team that plays as hard as they do, they are soft as charmin. Oilers will bully them in the playoffs.
Nice to see the Oilers setting the tone in the last couple of meetings for the potential upcoming playoffs matchup. Although just beating out Vegas for the division would be even better.
Hopefully the Oilers win out and Vegas stumbles.
It’s taken me a while tonight to boil over. McDavid finally draws a slash that’s a 100% obvious call. The moment the ref’s arm goes up and they realize a minor is coming, they take 2 more good hacks because they know the refs wouldn’t dare call 4min.
They’re hacking at the wrists of the league’s generational talent. That’s absolutely atrocious. This league treats its players like cannon fodder. Imagine a full career out of Orr, Gretz playing a few more years (I still think Gary Suter took at least a season off of the back end), imagine a healthy Leon last year, imagine Crosby with no concussions..,
This league is completely fucked.
That delay, stutter step then reverse and pull around the PK stick for the PP shot and eventual goal by 97 was something else.
He’s making 2-3 plays a shift now that no one else has in their bag
4 fer 4 on the PK.
Darnell Nurse played a great game from start to finish. Solid defending.
Doughty played 27:36.
Oilers win 3-1.
Huge standings win. Huge pre-playoff statement. Huge for the Nuge.
Huge. So glad for the late start and being able to see the 3rd.
Fluke goal aside, this was a playoff template tuneup.
Nice to have the, potential, all time best PP to lean on. Kinda like going to a knife fight but knowing you gotta bazooka in your back pocket.
NST had the Oilers at full value for the W. All situations expected goals 3.39 for the Oil drop, 1.87 for Leduc Alberta.
Big win, this team just showed how versatile they can be.
Want to play fast and loose? The Oilers can match it.
Want to play a tight defensive game? The Oilers can match it.
Ladies and gentleman, the Edmonton Oilers are a legitimate contender for the Stanley Cup, and as far as I am concerned, the best team in the Western Conference.
They dominated LA in the third by eye. LA really didn’t have that next gear like Edmonton has.
Most critically, they have the special teams required to win it all.
ESPN announcer, early in the game, had mentioned how McDavid is more likely to get 4 points in a game than 0.
McDavid with 0 points tonight.
A damn rare thing; good to get the win in a tight game and not need him powering the goals.
He got an assist on the Leo goal no?
Bah. You’re right. I have no idea what I was thinking.
McDavid got 1 assist.
McDavid had a McPoint tonight. He assisted on Draisaitl’s goal. The ESPN feed said he was on an 11-game point streak. This would presumably make it 12 if they’re correct.
2nd place in the division, here we come!
This team is unstoppable – big win
The title of LT’s post tomorrow – Bankshot!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a09hVzpQUjw
Well, certainly glad the boys got the W, but I’m not looking forward to a playoff series of this. Pretty boring hockey LA plays.
ESPN tells me Leon Draisaitl has the 3rd highest points/game rate all time. OK then.
Third highest pts/g in the playoffs.
Yes, tried to edit but too late. Playoff points/game.
Yes, only Gretzky (1.84) and Lemieux (1.61) are ahead of Draisaitl (1.59). McDavid is 5th all time at 1.49 (minimum 10 GP).
Fantastic.
Eat shit LA!
Lucky EN goal there, but I’d damn well take it!
Great game overall. Beat the Kings at their own game for the 2nd time in a week. That’s damn well beautiful.
Don’t mess with fate.
HH is shitting his pants. He’s also worried about the Oilers.
At least that two goal allowed streak is over. Wait for the EN asterisk in tomorrow’s thread
Giving “up only two goals a game” has gotten the Kings exactly SFA the last two contests against the Oilers!
A specific individual can just go right ahead and crow over the GAA if they wish.
It’s so pleasant to see the Kings completely give up.
White flag up.
Great game … Oilers full value for the win tonight.
Kings look absolutely gassed and deflated. This is a thing of beauty.
Maybe the best empty netter by any Oiler dman ever
Didn’t see that coming.
BOOM!!! Nurse with the snooker shot!!!
Bank shot!
Nurse the pool shark lol
Woodcroft is leaning on Ryan to an odd degree. I don’t get why he’s had so many shifts tonight.
Leading and there’s a game tomorrow?
10 minutes at 5 on 5.
11:52 overall.
They play again tomorrow.
No McLeod. He’s missed a lot of time this year
A Nuge EN goal would suit me fine.
Instead it’s Nurse!
Goalie pulled… where is Mr. 99 Nuge?
That really should have been a penalty against Ryan. Late hit, from behind.
Derek Ryan, smart smart shift, gets buried from behind for his troubles.
And doesn’t retaliate. Guy is a besuty
These are also the games where they really miss McLeod. That speed and skill after a tough shift against #97 or #29 makes a big difference.
LA going full dead-puck era and hoping a point shot goes off a skate and in.
That’s called Flattop Hockey.
97’s turbo button is stuck on. His close confines puck handling is of the charts
Desharnais walked 500 miles with huge strides but still could not get there in time. Still impressive to see.
I really really really don’t like the kings. Dallas terrorized my childhood Oiler playoffs. But I just do not like the kings, maybe more than Dallas.
i like that comparison.
Time bleaches the memory. Hatcher was a complete predator that never played within the rules. Never forget
Drai from McD and Nuge
Nuge with 99 points.
That must be a typo. Nuge is perpetually stuck at 49. 😂
still 1-0 in 5×5 goals for LAK!!
that makes them better!
I hate them trying to win this way. This should be over. Focus up and finish. Way too many missed chances in front of the Kings’ net.
Ice is absolute trash tonight, so many pucks bouncing and bobbling on both sides.
Fuck yes, Draisaitl!
Talk about a hard working goal . We’ll deserved.
Hard work got that PP too. Could’ve been 4 mins after they started slashing away once the arm went up.
They would not be denied
YES