Edmonton Oilers can't afford to play Josh Brown in playoff games
The Edmonton Oilers dressed six defencemen in Game 1 against the LA Kings, but they were still playing shorthanded.
Injuries to multiple defenders forced the Oilers to make a tough decision on who would fill in as the team’s sixth defenceman on the third pair. That spot, usually occupied by the injured Troy Stecher, ultimately came down to either AHL tweener Cam Dineen or veteran defender Josh Brown.
The latter won the spot, but he didn’t get to enjoy much time on the ice. Things almost immediately went south as Brown lost his man on the PK and allowed the Kings to score just under three minutes into the game.
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While every other Oilers defenceman played at least 13 minutes in Game 1, Brown only got a measly 4:54 of ice time all night. Of that time, only 2:21 was spent playing at five-on-five, which meant that the Oilers were effectively playing with one fewer defenceman at even-strength for the entire night.
That is far from acceptable for the Oilers and shows a complete lack of trust in Brown’s ability to make a positive impact. A Stanley Cup-contending team needs to have every player on the ice pulling their fair share. Dressing a full lineup and still having to double-shift defencemen all night is not a recipe for success in the playoffs.
It does look like help is on the way to prevent that from happening again. Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch confirmed earlier this week that John Klingberg, who has been sidelined with an undisclosed injury, will be an option heading into Game 2.
While the Swede has had his fair share of struggles, he should be able to make more of an impact and eat up more ice time than Brown managed in the opening game of the series. The ideal option remains Troy Stecher, but his timeline for a return is unknown at this point.
Even if Klingberg were unavailable, Dineen should probably be looked at before Brown draws back in.
In a playoff series where the tiniest of margins could mean victory or elimination, the Oilers can’t afford to play a defenceman they can’t trust to crack five minutes a night.