Oilers' Evander Kane makes presence felt in 7-4 Game 3 win after lost season

Donna Spencer · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Apr 26, 2025 4:14 PM EDT | Last Updated: 6 minutes ago

Evander Kane didn't instrumentality agelong to beryllium an interaction subordinate for the Edmonton Oilers again.

He required 1 crippled to shingle disconnected the rust of a mislaid regular play earlier producing a pivotal infinitesimal successful Edmonton's 7-4 triumph implicit the Los Angeles Kings connected Friday.

The Oilers way the Kings 2-1 heading into Sunday's Game 4 of their first-round playoff series.

Kane missed the full regular play due to the fact that of sports hernia country successful September, genu country successful January and the accompanying rehabilitation.

Wednesday's Game 2 successful L.A. was Kane's archetypal since Game 2 of the Stanley Cup last June 10, 2024.

Kane's third-period extremity Friday produced a immense payday. It withstood some a video reappraisal and coach's situation to knot the people 4-4.

Evan Bouchard scored the go-ahead extremity connected Edmonton's consequent powerfulness play for the mislaid coach's challenge.

Kane's half-look backhand walk to Connor Brown successful the slot tied the crippled 3-3 successful the 2nd period.

"He's 1 successful a million, man," Brown said. "It's unbelievable what he's capable to bash erstwhile the lights are on.

"I thought helium had a large crippled tonight. Not lone did helium evidently person those 2 large impactful [moments], but I thought helium was holding connected to the puck. He's forechecking well. I thought our enactment was capable to prolong immoderate offence and a batch to bash with him.

"I missed the afloat play and it took maine astir 60 games to score. It took him six periods."

Kane played conscionable nether 15 minutes and registered a changeable connected nett successful the 6-2 nonaccomplishment successful Game 2.

"To beryllium honest, I felt OK past game," helium said. "You're ne'er going to consciousness cleanable erstwhile it's your archetypal crippled backmost successful that long, but contiguous successful presumption of my legs and consciousness retired there, nighttime and day, and I'm definite it's going to proceed to get better."

The powerfulness guardant was battling for the puck astatine L.A.'s doorstep erstwhile the puck went disconnected his skate and Darcy Kuemper's assemblage for him to pat nether the Kings' goalie. Rogers Place had to hold until aft the reappraisal and situation to celebrate.

WATCH | Oilers look to adjacent up the bid with the Kings aft large Game 3 win: 

"I knew it was conscionable a substance of them seeing it connected the replay and it felt bully and past they situation it, truthful you ne'er cognize what tin hap successful those situations," Kane said.

"It was a bully boost for our team, an important goal. And past the powerfulness play goes retired and does its happening and we're successful the lead, truthful large triumph for our group.

"Hopefully springiness america immoderate momentum going into Game 4 and person a accidental to clasp service connected location ice."

Kane and skipper Connor McDavid, who scored into an bare nett and had 2 assists aft helium was held disconnected the scoresheet successful Game 2, each generated a team-high 4 shots connected L.A.'s net.

"I missed a full twelvemonth but I deliberation conscionable continuing to get backmost into a groove and getting into playoff hockey, you travel backmost to Edmonton you cognize there's immoderate buzz successful the city," Kane said. "You spell retired for warm-up truthful I deliberation we benignant of got re-energized a small bit.

"I thought the archetypal 2 games you cognize we were benignant of inactive successful regular-season mode and tonight, particularly successful the archetypal play we looked similar we're acceptable to spell and you cognize had a large propulsion successful the third."

The 33-year-old from Vancouver wasn't the lone Oiler trying to get his crippled legs backmost and retrieve chemistry to commencement the playoffs.

Defenceman John Klingberg missed the past 10 games of the regular play and Game 1 of the bid aft blocking a changeable March 27.

Forward Trent Frederic appeared successful conscionable 1 regular-season crippled aft Edmonton acquired him astatine the commercialized deadline due to the fact that of a high-ankle sprain. Leon Draisaitl, who had 2 assists Friday, sat retired the past 7 games of the regular play arsenic well.

"I'll enactment myself into that radical arsenic well," Draisaitl said. "Sometimes it takes a small (time), but this is aggravated hockey close disconnected the bat. Obviously we don't person overmuch time.

"It feels bully close present to get that win, but it's not going to bash overmuch if we don't travel it up. We've got to travel it successful 2 days present and instrumentality this backmost to LA 2-2."