Oilers offense evaporates in Game 4 shutout loss to Kings | Offside


Perhaps the Edmonton Oilers should have saved some goals for Sunday night.

After outscoring the Los Angeles Kings by a combined 14-2 during wins in Game 2 and Game 3, the Oilers were unable to get a single count during a 4-0 shutout loss in Game 4.

The series is now tied 2-2, with Game 5 scheduled for Tuesday in Edmonton.

Trevor Moore opened the scoring for the Kings in the first half. Troy Stecher and Carl Grundstrom (2) added the other points, while Jonathan Quick earned his 10th career playoff shutout.

Quick becomes the 13th goaltender in NHL history to record at least 10 shutouts in the playoffs. The only active goalkeeper ahead of him is Marc-Andre Fleury, who ranks fourth all-time with 16 career playoff shutouts of his.

The Kings goalkeeper is now the all-time leader in shutouts among American-born goalkeepers.

The best sequence for the 36-year-old goalkeeper came late in the second period when he made a couple of saves while losing his glove.

The playoffs are all about unlikely heroes stepping up, and there were certainly some contenders for the Kings tonight.

Grundstrom, a former Toronto Maple Leafs prospect, recorded the first three-point game of his career with two goals and an assist.

He has played a total of 132 NHL games, regular season and playoffs combined.

Stecher, who was a healthy scratch for the first three games of the series, made an impact on the game tonight with a goal and an assist.

For the Oilers, it could be argued that they needed to regress a bit on offense after averaging 5.67 goals per game through the first three games of the series.

Even after tonight’s shutout loss, Edmonton still has five players who have averaged at least one point per game so far in the postseason.

Evander Kane and Connor McDavid have six points. Evan Bouchard has five assists, while Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins each have four points.

In short, the Oilers should also be satisfied with Mike Smith. After a rocky start to the postseason in Game 1, the 40-year-old has been solid. He has stopped 116 of 121 shots in the last three games, good for a .958 save percentage.

Despite reasons for optimism, Jay Woodcroft spoke about expecting more from his team during his postgame news conference.

“It’s certainly a missed opportunity for us,” Woodcroft told reporters. “We are capable of more.”

“You get what you earned and tonight, we weren’t sharp enough to take our chances.”

“We certainly have more to give. For a man, we can all be better.”




Reference-dailyhive.com

Leave a Comment