For the fourth consecutive year, the Los Angeles Kings will face the Edmonton Oilers in a Western Conference first-round series of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
The Kings, who host the opener of the best-of-seven series Monday, are hoping for a new result. The Oilers won the previous three series, in which they held home-ice advantage, but that script has flipped this time.
“We feel in the locker room that we’re a better team than we have been in the past,” forward Adrian Kempe said. “Looking back at the past series, I think the first year we played them we were the better team and I think we should have beat them. I think everybody is pretty confident in how we’re playing right now, and it feels like we’re a better team than we have been in the past.”
Los Angeles won three of four regular-season meetings, the last two via shutout, and outscored Edmonton 12-4 in those clashes. The Kings finished four points ahead of Edmonton.
That said, everybody knows that regular-season success means nothing now. The keys for the Kings will be to contain Edmonton’s dynamic duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, and the special teams battle.
Los Angles, which posted the league’s best home record, struggled on the power play before the trade deadline, but since acquiring Andrei Kuzmenko improved dramatically.
“The power play guys … they scored some goals that I haven’t seen in a long time,” coach Jim Hiller said. “They’re feeling good, so we’ve got to make sure we maintain that throughout the series, despite how the ups and downs go.”
The Oilers, who last year saw their championship hopes dashed in a Game 7 loss to the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final, have a slew of players returning from injury, and possibly more as the series moves along.
Edmonton will have forwards Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman, as well as defenseman Jake Walman all return after missing a slew of games down the stretch.
As well, Trent Frederic (high-ankle sprain) is likely to suit for the curtain raiser, and the club is optimistic forward Evander Kane may return from the sports hernia and knee operations that have kept him sidelined all season, and defensemen John Klingberg and Troy Stecher will be options before the first round is complete.
The lone key player the Oilers will be without is defenseman Mattias Ekholm.
“We have the aura about us like we’re the walking wounded, but we’re just fine,” McDavid said. “Everybody’s going to be ready to roll. Everybody is doing whatever they can. I don’t like this whole notion that we’re the walking wounded here. We’re ready to roll.”
Whether that means the Oilers will roll the Kings yet again remains to be seen, but they feel confident of advancing.
“Every time we’ve come in with the same mentality,” McDavid said. “It’s a new series, there is no carry over. We don’t start up two games. It’s the first team to four and it’s a challenge every time.”
And all that familiarity means the rivalry needs no extra stoking.
“Both teams know each other well and know each other’s strengths,” said forward Viktor Arvidsson, who signed with the Oilers as a free agent after three seasons with the Kings. “I think it’s going to come down to execution and details in our game. Playoffs are always fun but playing against your former teammates and players that are still good friends is going to be great.”
