What Edmonton Oilers players are saying ahead of Game 2 in Vegas
The Edmonton Oilers are well aware of the fact that there is plenty of work to be done in order to advance to the Western Conference Final.
The Oilers got off to a great start in their second-round series versus the Vegas Golden Knights, picking up a 4-2 victory on Tuesday night. That said, the Oilers, who at one point trailed their first-round series 2-0 against the LA Kings, know that their opponent is going to be desperate for a win on Thursday night.
Oilers hoping for a better start
The Oilers made history in their recent win over the Golden Knights, becoming the first team to ever record five consecutive come-from-behind victories. It’s an impressive stat, but also one that indicates they need to find a way to have better starts.
“I think [it] starts with everybody playing the full game,” Evan Bouchard said after Thursday’s morning skate. “Obviously, the [first] five to 10 minutes [of Game 1] wasn’t what we wanted, but we knew to win a championship, you’ve got to play defence, you’ve got to shut them down. We’re finding a way to do that. We know how to do that.”
After those first 10 minutes, which saw the Oilers go down 2-0, they flipped the script and dominated the final 50. While there is still room for improvement, they are taking positives from that.
“It’s just attention to detail. We know we can defend really well,” Leon Draisaitl said. “We’ve done it lots of times during the regular season, we did it last year. We know how to do it the right way, it’s just a matter of doing it every night.”
Pickard relishing starting role
Once the Oilers went down 2-0 in their opening-round series versus the Kings, head coach Kris Knoblauch chose to go with Pickard between the pipes. The 33-year-old has done everything the organization could have hoped for, winning all five starts he’s made to this point.
“It’s the biggest stage [I’ve played on],” Pickard said. “I’d like to think I’m doing my job for the most part. We’re playing well as a team. We’re really connected, and I just want to continue to do my job.”
Though Pickard’s 2.76 GAA and .891 SV% in the postseason don’t jump off the page, he’s been able to come up with timely saves in order to give this high-powered offensive group the chance to win games. He is set to make his sixth consecutive start in Game 2.
“I think he’s just enjoying the moment,” Knoblauch said. “He’s been through a long stretch of getting to where he wants to get, being a third-string goalie on a team [that] got a lot of call-ups and then [sent] back to the AHL.
He finally got his footing as an NHL regular goaltender, and now he’s getting consecutive starts in the playoffs. I don’t think anything could rattle him right now. He’s just enjoying it, just his personality of being a good guy, works extremely hard, and he’s enjoying the moment.”
Vegas could get Pietrangelo back from injury
The Oilers caught a bit of a break in Game 1 on Tuesday night, as 35-goal scorer Pavel Dorofyev was out of the lineup with an undisclosed injury. He will remain out of the lineup in Game 2, though the Golden Knights could be welcoming back a big piece on the back end.
Also sitting out of Game 1 was Alex Pietrangelo, who missed the outing due to an illness. He was able to join his teammates on Thursday for morning skate, and has been ruled a game-time decision.
Pietrangelo averaged a team-leading 22:46 minutes in ice time throughout the regular season, while scoring four goals and 33 points in 71 games. If he is able to go, Oilers fans should expect to see him on the ice often against the likes of Draisaitl and Connor McDavid.
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