Three minutes into Game 4, Vegas Golden Knights goalie Adin Hill pushed Zach Hyman—a sign that the Edmonton Oilers were already under their opponents’ skin. The Oilers had already opened the scoring, though both teams traded chances and unpleasantries in the early stages of the game.
From the chaos that stemmed from Adam Henrique’s second goal of the period, to the waning moments of the first, there was clearly no love lost between the Pacific Division rivals.
Oilers took an early lead and kept it that way
Through the first period the Oilers were dominant, having their way with the neutral zone. The Oilers were also rabid on the forecheck, punishing the Knights defencemen. Despite a number of power plays for the Knights, the Oilers advantages were visible on the shot counter just as they were on the scoreboard.
While there was significantly less post-whistle shenanigans in the second period, the Oilers remained the better team. Evander Kane was a menace all game, extending the lead to three off the rush. The Oilers were able to keep the Knights at bay, limiting virtually all scoring chances in the second frame.
Taking a three goal lead to the third period, score effects would inevitably come into play. The Oilers did well keeping much of the third a stalemate, the Knights unable to make much of a push until pulling their goalie with three and a half minutes left. Even then, the Knights were not able to muster much of a push. The Oilers continued to be the faster and more physical team, smothering the Knights efforts.
With 49 seconds left the Knights took a time-out, the Oilers unofficial win song of these playoffs, “Pink Pony Club” echoing through the building. With that the game was salted away, the polarizing Stuart Skinner earning the shutout. In all it was a stellar performance from the Oilers, forceful, intentional, and purposeful. The oft maligned penalty kill even authored a banner night, a sign that the struggles from early in the first round are fading away.
The usage of Kapanen snd Stecher
Two players were inserted into the lineup for Game 4, both making their presence felt. Kasperi Kapanen was among the Oilers most physical forecheckers, along with Kane and Vasily Podkolzin, making an investment that will pay off as the series continues. Kapanen was not immune to mistakes, taking a penalty in the first, though the Oilers killing off the penalty kept his impact fairly unblemished.
Meanwhile, the ever steady Troy Stecher was his usual simple and effective self. Stecher is undersized, but provides Darnell Nurse with a complementary defence partner. Perhaps it should not be such a surprise that the Oilers best defensive performance, as well as one of Nurse’s best games this postseason, came with Stecher in the lineup.
Skinner gets the shutout
It will take a lot more work for Skinner to make his stats from this playoffs look more palatable, but this was a great start. Obviously the Oilers made his night as easy as possible, but Skinner had a number of quality saves in the game, including in the first period.
The Oilers will need Skinner to be at his best if they wish to achieve their goal. Calvin Pickard did a fantastic job during his run, but an injury now clouds his availability. The Oilers should feel comfortable riding the hot hand, though Skinner provides the higher upside of the two.
Different forwards stepping up
After sitting out the entire season, it might have been expected that it would take some time for Evander Kane to hit his stride. While he has played well to this point, Kane was at his best in Game 4. If Kane can maintain this level of play, the Oilers will continue to be a force to be reckoned with. Perhaps his time sitting out will have Kane as fresh as possible going forward. Kane was a plus-three on the night, his line with Adam Henrique and Connor Brown was fantastic.
It is impossible to discuss the Oilers without mentioning their superstar duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, but Game 4 might be an exception. The focus of the night will be on many of the Oilers depth players, highlighting their complete team effort.
Many believe that Draisaitl is dealing with an injury, a shadow of his usual supernatural playoff self. Still, his line with Podkolzin and Kapanen did a great job shutting down Jack Eichel and company. McDavid definitely had some gusto, and the Oilers duo was still good by most players’ standards.
Still, to win the Oilers will need more than their star power, and this win represents the growth the roster has accomplished over the years. The Oilers will need more from their stars in the games ahead, and one would figure that will come sooner rather than later.
Klingberg continues to be effective
An ongoing story is the renaissance of veteran John Klingberg. After dealing with injuries over much of the past five seasons, Klingberg is rediscovering his effectiveness in rhetorical playoffs. Along with defence partner Jake Walman, the Oilers injected a lot of skill to their back end throughout the season.
This has allowed the team to slice through the neutral zone more effectively, as evidenced by the number of goals scored off the rush in this series. It took some time for the blueline to find its footing without stalwart Mattias Ekholm, but Klingberg deserves credit for being part of the solution. Virtually every player on the Oilers had a strong game, including Evan Bouchard who was physical and defensively sound.
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