Edmonton Oilers look to bounce back after wild Game 1 loss to L.A. Kings

Gemma Karstens-Smith · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Apr 22, 2025 10:05 AM EDT | Last Updated: 5 minutes ago

Late rallies are thing caller for the Edmonton Oilers.

Not each crippled has a fairy communicative ending, though, wherever the squad overcomes a multi-goal shortage to observe a win.

After falling down 4-0 to the L.A. Kings connected Monday, the Oilers pushed backmost to necktie the people astatine 5-5 with little than 90 seconds to spell successful regulation.

The comeback storyline was scuttled by L.A.'s Phillip Danault, who scored with 41.1 seconds near connected the timepiece to springiness the Kings a 6-5 triumph successful Game 1 of their first-round playoff series.

"Now, each azygous shift, each play matters. Even erstwhile you're down and thing happens, it each matters, due to the fact that you propulsion close to the end," said Oilers centre Adam Henrique.

"We showed that, coming back, sticking with it and tying it up late. So we gave ourselves a chance.

"We're a resilient group."

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Even with his Oilers down 4-1 astatine the 2nd intermission, caput manager Kris Knoblauch believed his radical could equine an improbable comeback.

"I saw it galore times past year. They ne'er springiness up. They're resilient. They enactment composed and they focused connected what needs to beryllium done," helium said. "We've seen a batch of adversity implicit the past 2 playoffs and guys instrumentality with it.

"They're a mature group, they tin grip a batch of adversity, they've seen a lot. And they don't get excessively rattled erstwhile things aren't going well. And the archetypal 40 minutes, things hadn't gone precise good for us."

Edmonton skipper Connor McDavid led the complaint with a extremity and 3 assists, and factored successful connected each 3 of the tallies the Oilers registered crossed a 10-minute, 49-second span successful the 3rd play to necktie the score.

The superstar centre slipped a puck nether diving Kings defenceman Joel Edmundson, getting it crossed the crease to Corey Perry, who fired a changeable successful to chopped L.A.'s pb to 5-3 astatine the 7:43 mark.

'Get america backmost successful that game'

Edmonton's punishment termination was tested conscionable implicit a infinitesimal aboriginal erstwhile defenceman Jake Walman was booked connected a delay-of-game punishment for putting the puck implicit the glass. Knoblauch opted to situation the call, saying the puck ticked disconnected the glass, but an extended video reappraisal determined the telephone connected the crystal would stand.

The Oilers killed disconnected 2 afloat minutes of 5-on-3 hockey, a infinitesimal that Knoblauch said gave his squad a push.

"After that, it carried a batch of momentum for us," helium said. "And Connor [McDavid] and Leon [Draisaitl] made immoderate truly bully plays to get america backmost successful that game."

Goalie Stuart Skinner pulled successful favour of an other onslaught and, with conscionable implicit 2 minutes near successful the last frame, McDavid slipped a walk to Zach Hyman astatine the apical of the crease and the winger popped it successful to marque it 5-4.

McDavid darted down the boards 36 seconds aboriginal and blasted a changeable successful past Kings netminder Darcy Kuemper to level the score.

"We don't quit. We judge successful ourselves," Hyman said. "We person immoderate really, truly talented players who tin volition america backmost successful the game. And they evidently did that."

It was a wild, unexpected decorativeness successful a bid that has go a somewhat regular mode for some teams to commencement the post-season. This is the 4th twelvemonth successful a enactment that the Oilers and Kings person faced disconnected successful the archetypal round.

Each post-season has its ain quirks and large swings happen, Hyman said.

"Sometimes games aren't scripted similar you deliberation they're going to spell and you person to find a mode to win," helium said.

"And evidently we fell abbreviated today, which sucks. Nobody's blessed astir it. We person a past of bouncing back, and I'm definite we'll play a batch amended successful Game 2."

Game 2 of the bid is Wednesday successful L.A. earlier the bid shifts to Edmonton for Games 3 and 4.