Global Courant 2023-05-07 07:24:07
Leon Draisaitl continued his torrid playoff scoring pace and Connor McDavid scored twice for the Edmonton Oilers in a 5-1 victory Saturday over the Golden Knights in Las Vegas to tie their playoff series at one win apiece.
Edmonton’s five-goal lead into the middle of the game saw skirmishes and plenty of penalty minutes for the rest, as the Knights tried to assert themselves in the game in other ways.
The best-of-seven Pacific Division Final heads to Edmonton for Monday’s Game 3 and Wednesday’s Game 4. Game 5 is back in Las Vegas on Friday.
Draisaitl scored twice this season for his NHL-leading 12th and 13th playoff goals. McDavid’s two goals included a short hand for Edmonton’s third. The Oilers captain also had an assist for a three-point night.
LOOK | McDavid puts Oilers 3-0 ahead with beautiful short-handed goal:
McDavid’s sweet shorty leads Oilers to Game 2 victory
Edmonton defeats Vegas 5-1 to tie the series 1-1 in the second round. Oilers captain Connor McDavid scores two runs, including an outstanding low-handed goal in the opening period, to finish with three points.
The record for single-season playoff goals is 19 held jointly by Philadelphia Flyer Reggie Leach (1976) and Oiler Jari Kurri (1985). Draisaitl is racing towards that goal.
“He’s playing on a different level,” McDavid noted. “I’m not sure why anyone would be surprised at this point. He’s the best player in the world for many nights. He’s shown that on a regular basis.
“We are here for much more than scoring goals and getting points. It’s not about that at all. That’s not what we’re doing here. We’re just part of it.”
Lucky number 1⃣3⃣ for Leon pic.twitter.com/PtGiSn8SuC
Defenseman Evan Bouchard scored a power play goal and assisted on two others for the Oilers, who scored twice in the first period with a man advantage en route to a 4–0 lead after 20 minutes.
Zach Hyman, who was an effective disruptor in the Vegas fold, had two assists, as did Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner made 30 saves in the win, including a stop on Chandler Stephenson on a breakaway midway through the second period.
Ivan Barbashev scored a goal in the third period for the Knights, who took the series opener 6-4.
Vegas starter Laurent Brossoit was traded for Adin Hill late in the second period on Edmonton’s fifth goal on 26 shots. Hill deflected all four shots in relief.
Oilers continue to produce on power play
Edmonton went 3-for-6 with a men’s advantage and held the Knights scoreless on three power play opportunities.
The Oilers went 14-for-25 with a men’s advantage for a 56 percent success rate in this year’s playoffs.
Drai gets his 12th (!!!) of the playoffs pic.twitter.com/vHY8DtxffR
“When teams are undisciplined and running around, that’s one of the ways we can make them pay,” said Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft. “One of the ways.
“We were able to come at their team in waves. There was a reason why they took the penalties because we played at a certain pace.”
‘We stood up for each other when we had to’
With the game coming away from them in the second period, the Knights wanted to send a message for Game 3.
Edmonton’s Evander Kane punched Knights’ winger Keegan Kolesar several times during a second-period fight that resulted in five minor penalties, two majors, and Kane’s misconduct.
Kane and Kolesar tangled again with just over five minutes left in the third period when Kolesar caught a misconduct.
“We get up to nothing five times and we know they’re going to try to run around and cause (destruction) and get involved in the game in some way,” Kane said. “I thought we did a great job there. Guys want to swing their sticks and hit guys on the head, hopefully someone is watching that.
“We stood up for each other when we had to. We are a team that I don’t think can be punished physically. We like to punish.”
Knights coach Bruce Cassidy wanted more fire from his team from the start.
“The most disappointing part of the game for me as a head coach,” said Cassidy. “You’re going to have nights where you’re outdone by this team. They were more competitive. We sort of got kicked out of the team for lack of a better term. That’s disappointing. Should never happen with the Vegas Golden Knights.
“We weren’t hard with the puck. Guys we rely on offensively need to understand that.
“If you’re going to beat a good team that’s offensively focused, the highest scoring team in the league, you’ve got to have the puck. You can’t hope to defend them all night.”
“We’ll play the power play all night if they want to”
McDavid appeared to be controlling his left ankle or leg after falling down the boards at the end of the first period.
However, the NHL’s leading scorer this season scored a power play goal in the second period by firing a sharp shot through an impossibly small opening at Brossoit’s right post.
McD nets another pic.twitter.com/LjDfxaaEwF
“If they want to run around and play that kind of game, we’ll play all night on the power play if they want to,” McDavid said. “However, we are not going to sit back either.”
Vegas unsuccessfully challenged Draisaitl’s second goal of the first period for goaltender interference.
The Knights killed the ensuing minor, but Edmonton’s power play had already done damage. Draisaitl and Bouchard had put the Oilers ahead 2-0 after seven minutes of play.
McDavid knocked the puck away from Knights defender Shea Theodore at the blue line and caught it in the Vegas net, where McDavid tucked it under Brossoit’s left path at 11:11 for his short-handed goal.
