The Edmonton Oilers continue their run to the Stanley Cup Finals tonight as they play the Colorado Avalanche in game 1 of the Western Conference Final.
After dismantling the Calgary Flames in only 5 games they Edmonton Oilers open up the 3rd against a formidable Colorado Avalanche team. This is the first time since 1998 that these teams have met in the playoffs.
This Colorado Avalanche team is a team that has skills that the Oilers haven’t seen so far this series. It goes further than Nathan Mackinnon and Cale Makar, they have depth and well-known names all the way down to the third defensive pair.
The Edmonton Oilers are a pretty deep too though. The Edmonton Oilers have players on their third line that have played on their first line. The same goes with their defenseman. The goaltending for these teams are also equal.
As much as Colorado was the better team during the regular season, so were the Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers beat them in 5 games. This series is going to be a hard fought battle every night. I don’t expect to see any blow-out games like we have seen in the first two rounds.
There is a few thing the Edmonton Oilers are going to need to focus on this series that they have struggled with in previous series and throughout the season.
Fast Edmonton Oilers Start
In game one in the opening round against the Los Angles the Edmonton Oilers gave up the first two goals and were down 2-0 at the 16:48 mark of the first period. The Oilers were able to come back to tie it at 2 only to lose 4-3.
In the Calgary Flames series they had an even worse start in game 1. They were down 2-0 at the 51 second mark and down 3-0 at the 6:05 mark. Things didn’t get much better as they ended up being down 6-2 at the 8:24 mark of the second period. Once again the Edmonton Oilers were able to tie the game at 6 only to give up 3 unanswered to end up losing 9-6.
The Edmonton Oilers can’t do this again tonight. I don’t know why they seem to struggle early in these games, but they need to figure it out cause the Avalanche aren’t likely to give up leads as easily as the Kings and Flames did. So getting the first goal will be more key in this series than the last two.
Special Teams
Just like all season long, special teams will be a huge piece of this Edmonton Oilers team’s success. They had one of the best powerplays in the regular season and they will need it to be that way in this series.
As I mentioned before goals in the playoffs come at a premium. If you are able to get one or two a game then you are bound to win that game. This is why it is important for the powerplay to be clicking coming into this series.
The same goes for the playing discipline hockey. If the Edmonton Oilers take a lot of penalties, then this opens the door for the Avalanche to score a powerplay goal. The Avalanche also have a lot of skilled players on their powerplay so they are also bound to score if they are given multiple opportunities.
Want your voice heard? Join the Oil On Whyte team!
Prediction
I thought the Calgary Flames series was going to be a tough battle for the Edmonton Oiler, but I still has the Oilers winning in 6. They ended up winning in 5.
When it comes to the Colorado Avalanche, they are a better team than the Flames. I personally do not think they are playing as good as Edmonton is right now. The Oilers have all aspects of their team going running smoothly.
Edmonton Oilers in 6
After watching how the Edmonton Oilers were to shut down the Flames top line after game one is the reason I think the Oilers win. Woodcroft has the ability to determine where the Oilers have issues and make adjustments accordingly. For that reason I think we will be watching the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Edmonton Oilers Lines
Same Oilers lineup for Game 4 under the presumption that Nurse is good to go; not on the ice this morning:
— Tony Brar (@TonyBrarOTV) May 24, 2022
Kane - McDavid - (Draisaitl)
Hyman - RNH - Puljujarvi
Foegele - McLeod - Yamamoto
Archibald - Ryan - Kassian
(Nurse) - Ceci
Keith - Bouchard
Kulak - Barrie
Smith#Oilers
Colorado Avalanche Lines
#Avs line rushes
— Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) May 27, 2022
Landeskog-MacKinnon-Lehkonen
Nichushkin-Kadri-Rantanen
Burakovsky-Compher-NAK
Cogliano-Helm-O'Connor
Toews-Makar
J. Johnson-Manson
Byram-E. Johnson
Kuemper
Pre-Game Audio
Zach Hyman
"There are a lot of really good players in this series & often times it comes down to depth. Everybody has to be ready for their moment because you don't know when it's going to be."
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) May 31, 2022
Hear from Hyman ahead of tonight's #Oilers vs. Avs Game 1. pic.twitter.com/MRD3xHBkKJ
Tyson Barrie
"This'll be our biggest test."
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) May 31, 2022
Hear from former Av Tyson Barrie as he gets set to face his former club when the #Oilers suit up for Game 1 tonight in Colorado. pic.twitter.com/Z7MkcYNKme
Jay Woodcroft
"All three series present different issues & different things you have to key on & focus on."
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) May 31, 2022
Coach Woodcroft speaks ahead of tonight's Western Conference Final Game 1. pic.twitter.com/2I3EPogzvB
Playoff Round 3-Game #1
Date: 5/31/2022
Opponent: Colorado Avalanche
Location: Ball Arena
Time: 6:00 PM
Live Stream: FuboTV
fuboTV has live NHL games on ESPN in which you can stream from your phone, television, and all your favorite devices. This is a service that broadcasts live TV over the internet, no cable required. Watch your favorite teams, network shows, news, and movies on 100+ channels. Plus on-demand entertainment including full TV series. fuboTV is currently available in the United States, Canada, and Spain
Betting Odds: WynnBET
The Edmonton Oilers and the Colorado Avalanche betting odds on WynnBET have Oilers as +1.5 point underdogs tonight, while the Avalanche are the favorites at -1.5. Colorado is also favored with a Moneyline odd of -178 on the night while the Oilers are sitting at +158. Tonight’s game is expected to be high-scoring with an over/under of 6.0 goals on the night.