Pre-Game Talk: The Only Series We’ve Ever Known: Oilers @ Kings

[tiger_80]

have not hated on Mikey for a long time.

 

[Fourier]

I do see a surprising amount of Kings merch around the streets of LA and SoCal in general. With that many people it's not so surprising. They've cleaned the city up real good in the last while as well in preparation for the Olympics.

Wife's from there, so I end up spending a good amount of months a year in the area.

With merchandise, the team gets the money only if it was purchased in one of their stores. If someone buys a Kings jersey from a venue not operated by the Kings the Oilers get the same share of that sale as the Kings do.

At one point the Kings had one of the League's most lucrative Their del is with Bally Sports whose parent company is in bankruptcy proceedings.

 

[Fourier]

The 1987-88 team felt exactly like that, too, and then they went 16 and 2...

Never know with the McDrai / Nurse / Nuge-era Oilers. Just too unpredictable.

If everyone were healthy, I'd say the Oilers have a reasonable shot to win, but with all these injuries I think LA has the upper hand, especially if they start at home.

The bolded is why I think that the Oilers still have the upper hand provided the Oliers goalies don't tank. LA has had trouble containing McDavid and Draisaitl on any consistent basis in the post season as these two turn the heat up. In contrast, aside from Kempe there is really no one on LA that I'd have any real fear of offensively. Kopitar will have his hands full on the defensive side of the equation, and Fiala is just too inconsistent. Maybe Byfield takes a step forward but we will have to see. If McDavid and Draisaitl are in normal post season form, I think the Oilers will be fine even without Ekholm.

The loss of Ekholm is big but if Walman plays to his potential and if Nurse can continue to step up the Oilers defense should be able to manage. I think up front the Oilers may well be better than last year now that the secondary guys have found some scoring touch.

 

[Louis Cypher]

Simple, Vegas has the better goalie. Did we forget about 2023 so quickly?

If we had last years goaltending. We would have beat Vegas. Skinner was extra bad that year.

 

[jukon]

Absolutely the Oilers will beat the Kings, it's just a matter of how much garbage the refs let Gary's teams get away with and how beat up we will be after.

 

[tardigrade81]

When's the last time a player missed three games with an "illness" re RNH.

One time I missed work for three days because I had bad diarrhea

But ya. Doesn't happen often that's for sure

 

[frag2]

The bolded is why I think that the Oilers still have the upper hand provided the Oliers goalies don't tank. LA has had trouble containing McDavid and Draisaitl on any consistent basis in the post season as these two turn the heat up. In contrast, aside from Kempe there is really no one on LA that I'd have any real fear of offensively. Kopitar will have his hands full on the defensive side of the equation, and Fiala is just too inconsistent. Maybe Byfield takes a step forward but we will have to see. If McDavid and Draisaitl are in normal post season form, I think the Oilers will be fine even without Ekholm.

The loss of Ekholm is big but if Walman plays to his potential and if Nurse can continue to step up the Oilers defense should be able to manage. I think up front the Oilers may well be better than last year now that the secondary guys have found some scoring touch.

I'm hoping Kane and Frederic coming back can also infuse some nastiness to the team as well. Seems like entire year, we've been avoiding playing overtly physical against our opps

 

[FlameChampion]

I think the Oilers will win but its a tough series as always. Ekholm is a big loss. McDavid has looked better than has at any point this season. And Draisaitl is a bad man. Hopefully the goaltending is good enough.

 

[nally]

Speaking of Ekholm, has there been any real update from the team on his injury? I've only seen one guy's reporting: Rishaug. Hoping there's a chance he's wrong and Ekholm's injury is one of those, "less serious than we thought" situations that you sometimes see. The injury reporting has been a little strange this year.

My guess is that we don't hear anything concrete until the playoffs are done

 

[nally]

I think we get the job done in 7, but the process will be excruciatingly stressful and we'll get thunder clapped by whoever plays us in round 2.

Even still, I could also see the Kings beating us in 6-7 games. The law of averages is working in their favor and we have been plagued by injuries.

McDrai says your law of averages be damned

 

[K1984]

The reasons why the Oilers will win:

- We have a significant special teams advantage, the Kings power play is abysmal and our PK is heating up at the right time

- McDavid and Draisaitl have burned Denault and Kopitar alive in head to head matchups 3 years in a row and I don't see any reason that will be different this time. Ditto for Doughty.

- We know how to play them. Even in the 97/29less game in LA, I think it was a pretty evenly played game, we just didn't have finish or the power play in the lineup. The game here earlier in the year where we won a cagey 1-0 game is the template, and we know how to follow it

- The game we are seeing from the Kings is their peak. There is nowhere to go for them but down. Save for about a month this year, the Oilers have been a roller coaster and have nowhere to go but up. Still neck and neck with them.

- Kuemper is overrated, a beneficiary of their system, but doesn't get challenged a lot.

- We have playoff style players coming into the lineup at the right time

The reasons why the Oilers will lose:

- Goaltending

- "snakebit" randomly

- Returning injured players aren't healthy enough


I feel really good about the series despite the headwinds. I think it will take a total system failure in one area or another to lose, and I think we can avoid that.

 

[soothsayer]

My prediction is based on the assumption that Draisaitl, RNH, Hyman, and Walman are ready to play in game 1. If those guys are ready, the Oilers win in 5, even without Ekholm. Once they get past LA, Kane and Frederic will presumably start to contribute meaningfully to the team. If they can hold on until Ekholm is able to come back, if he comes back, then all bets are off.

That's my optimistic take after LA. But I think they take care of LA handedly either way. 5 games.

 

[Satoru Gojo]

Playoff format sucks ass

Oilers should probably still win this series even though I’m not feeling great about this years team

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

Wendo gets it.

 

[tiger_80]

If we had last years goaltending. We would have beat Vegas. Skinner was extra bad that year.

Was it against Las Vegas or LA that he fumbled on the puck and gave the other team an empty net goal.

 

[McBeastMode]

 

[Arpeggio]

You guys are all nuts. The Oilers are obviously still the favourites against the Kings. I'm not saying they'll win, because in hockey even if you're the favourite bounces can go against you and the worse team can win. But the Oilers will have a healthy lineup minus Ekholm for game 1, and may be adding additional middle-six forwards as well. The Oil had one terrible stretch of games this season. Aside from that ten game stretch, they have been much better than the Kings. I'm telling you, McDavid and Draisaitl are 100%, the team has been load managing all the way to the end here.

 

[FiveFourteenSixOne]

This Kings team is virtually the same as last year, with slightly better goaltending (Talbot with 913 last year and Kuemper with 921 this year). The Oilers on paper are better this year. And they beat the Kings in 5 games last year. That's a stomping in my books. They also have beaten them in 3 straight seasons. Again, also a stomping. The Kings of 2022 was their best team.

I completely disagree that the Oilers on paper are better this year.

They're actually much worse.

Then combine that with the fact that any team is hard-pressed to beat another 4 times in a row with the parity of the league, and I have a very bad feeling about this.

 

[K1984]

You guys are all nuts. The Oilers are obviously still the favourites against the Kings. I'm not saying they'll win, because in hockey even if you're the favourite bounces can go against you and the worse team can win. But the Oilers will have a healthy lineup minus Ekholm for game 1, and may be adding additional middle-six forwards as well. The Oil had one terrible stretch of games this season. Aside from that ten game stretch, they have been much better than the Kings. I'm telling you, McDavid and Draisaitl are 100%, the team has been load managing all the way to the end here.

Especially with McDavid coming back and actually looking like McDavid.

 

[FiveFourteenSixOne]

 

[soothsayer]

Especially with McDavid coming back and actually looking like McDavid.

9 points in 3 games and dominating the ice. There's a chance we see a McDavid these playoffs that we've never seen before. And if Draisaitl has been sitting out not because he's really hurt but to power up for the playoffs, it could be a short series for LA. I predicted Oilers in 5 and I am sticking with that. It wouldn't surprise me if they sweep LA.

 

[Slats432]

 

[GMofOilers]

We need a couple weeks before playoffs start to get healthy enough to ice a lineup

We aren’t getting out of round 1 this year

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

View attachment 1013557

Sure, he also won the last 2, even if belief in him is tough.

 

[FiveFourteenSixOne]

I guess I'm ok with McDavid sitting out. Don't want Kings players taking runs at him, and lord knows if given the chance they will.