The Vegas Golden Knights topped the Edmonton Oilers 6-4 in a track meet Wednesday, weathering Leon Draisaitl's masterly four-goal night to win the second-round series opener. Keep an eye on these important battlegrounds as the matchup continues.

The big guns

Connor McDavid led all NHL forwards in ice time in Round 1, skating for 25:10 nightly. Draisaitl ranked second at 23:47. Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft leans on his stars, and he played his trump card during the Los Angeles Kings series, uniting Draisaitl with McDavid to stack Edmonton's top line.

Smartly, Woodcroft stuck with the idea Wednesday. McDavid's crafty feeds bookended Draisaitl's epic performance. Exhibiting genius, Draisaitl banked another puck in off of Laurent Brossoit's nameplate as McDavid charged to the net to receive a potential pass.

Draisaitl was the second player in as many nights to pot four goals in defeat, emulating Dallas Stars veteran Joe Pavelski. The Oilers center is the first skater since the dawn of the Original Six era to score 11 goals in seven playoff games. Draisaitl maxed out at seven goals in the 2022 playoffs despite averaging a sublime two points per contest. If the Oilers rally in this series, he might obliterate the long-held NHL postseason record of 19 tallies.

Edmonton's firepower is unparalleled, but Vegas trots out stars, too.

Jack Eichel led the Golden Knights in shots on net and shot attempts in Round 1. Healed from back surgery, Mark Stone produced eight points and eight takeaways to shine at both ends. Vegas outscored the Winnipeg Jets 5-1 and owned 67.7% of the scoring chances when Stone skated with Chandler Stephenson and Brett Howden at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick.

Seen laboring at practice this week, Stone absorbed bumps and cross-checks throughout Game 1 but kept venturing to the grimy areas. He beat Vincent Desharnais in a puck battle, then capped the shift seconds later by scoring on a redirect. Eichel, who passed to the point to facilitate Stone's goal, stripped McDavid in the final minute to earn a free shot at Edmonton's empty net. Sliding the puck the length of the ice, Eichel made no mistake.

The secondary scorers

Familiar names (Evander Kane, Zach Hyman) and unsung heroes (Klim Kostin, Kailer Yamamoto) stepped up throughout Round 1 when Edmonton needed a boost. In all, 10 Oilers players scored against the Kings, with seven scoring multiple times to tie the Toronto Maple Leafs for the opening-round high.

That help dried up in Game 1. Hyman's elbow grease and passing touch contributed to two of Draisaitl's goals, but Edmonton's remaining lines were silenced.

The Oilers couldn't contain the Golden Knights' transitional attacks or protect the puck when forechecked. Vegas is clinical in those phases of the game. Michael Amadio and Chandler Stephenson raced into open space off the rush before they buried shots behind Stuart Skinner. Ivan Barbashev induced a Desharnais giveaway when he bagged the first of his two goals.

Stephenson and William Karlsson paced Vegas with four goals apiece in the triumph over Winnipeg. Howden (two tallies) and Amadio (crucial overtime winner) emerged as X-factor contributors. That diversity of scoring maximizes the Golden Knights' offensive potential, as their 14th-ranked attack this season trails every remaining team except the Carolina Hurricanes.

Watch out for the defensemen when Vegas pushes the puck up ice. Alex Pietrangelo combined with Shea Theodore to record eight assists in Round 1, though no Golden Knights blue-liner scored. That dry spell continued Wednesday, but Zach Whitecloud's outlet pass and wrister from the point sparked separate Vegas goals, including Barbashev's tip that restored the lead for good in the third period.

The Oilers' power play

The blatant mismatch that could sink Vegas in this series was significant but not decisive in Game 1. McDavid's vision and Evan Bouchard's heavy shot teed up Draisaitl to convert two of Edmonton's three power-play opportunities. The Oilers went 19-2-4 in the regular season when the power play struck multiple times, per Stathead. Usually, it's a winning formula.

Because the Oilers besieged the Kings in Round 1, capitalizing on nine of 16 power-play tries (56.3%), Vegas' penalty kill was spared the shame of ranking last league-wide. The Golden Knights let the Jets capitalize on five of 12 attempts (41.7%).

No team was penalized less than the Golden Knights this season. They never went a man down on the night they bounced the Jets, and they generally minimized the damage of Winnipeg's power play.

They have to avoid the box in this round. The obstruction penalties Nicolas Hague and Nicolas Roy took in Game 1 were excusable, unlike Pietrangelo needlessly roughing up Bouchard after the second-period horn sounded.

The goaltenders

Advantage Brossoit.

Neither goalie was solid in the opener, but the Vegas netminder had less to do and made the requisite saves, denying McDavid's four shots on net and all five high-danger shots he faced at five-on-five.

At the other end, Barbashev neutralized Draisaitl's first and third goals by scoring on Skinner within a minute of the ensuing faceoffs. Five shots eluded Skinner for the first time since March 11.

It's remarkable that one of these guys will be a conference finalist. Brossoit made 20 starts for the Oilers over a four-year span back when Draisaitl and McDavid were finding their footing in the league. He quieted fans of the Jets, his next team, who needled him with "You're a backup!" chants in Round 1. Demoted to the AHL at the outset of this season, Brossoit turned 30 in March and has now started eight games in a row for Vegas, a new career high.

Skinner withstood adversity against the Kings - being yanked a period into Game 4, being scored on when his stick snapped in Game 6 - to win with a meager .890 overall save percentage. Despite the rocky postseason introduction, Woodcroft's faith in the Calder Trophy finalist didn't waver. Seven appearances in, Edmonton's still waiting for Skinner to submit a dominant playoff performance.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Way back in the third period of Game 1, Vladislav Gavrikov dropped to all fours to disrupt Connor McDavid's dish to Leon Draisaitl's wheelhouse. The pass breakup on an Edmonton Oilers odd-man rush changed the direction of the series. Shut out to that point, the Los Angeles Kings surged up ice and scored to spark a multi-goal comeback.

It was only one play, but the sequence threatened to haunt the Oilers. That the Kings took Game 1 meant Trevor Moore's overtime snapper in Game 3 restored their lead in the series. It meant the Oilers were careening toward premature elimination when they trailed with a few minutes left in Game 4. It showed that icing two all-world scorers doesn’t guarantee victory, and it affirmed Los Angeles wasn't a walkover.

The Kings leveled up over the past year, strengthening the lineup that pushed the Oilers to seven games in the prequel to this matchup. L.A. traded for difference-makers at every position: Kevin Fiala up front, Gavrikov on defense, and Joonas Korpisalo in net. Plus, Viktor Arvidsson and Drew Doughty weren't injured this time around.

Plenty of hockey was played after Gavrikov's deflection. Momentum kept shifting. Edmonton bewailed stick penalties that were called and high puck touches that weren't. The noise ebbed when Evander Kane and Zach Hyman buried goals that saved the season, setting up Kailer Yamamoto to flick the floater from above the faceoff circle that bumped the Kings from the Stanley Cup hunt Saturday night.

Fortitude fuels long playoff runs. Being resilient and adaptable helped the Oilers oust the Kings.

Discounting empty-netters, Kane and Hyman had yet to score in the series when they beat Korpisalo to steal Game 4. Promoted to center the second line, Nick Bjugstad caused havoc in the Kings' zone and struck twice in Game 5. Klim Kostin's two-goal eruption and Yamamoto's late winner made up for Edmonton squandering multiple Game 6 leads.

Brilliant all series, Draisaitl recorded 11 points in six games and was on the ice for 19 of Edmonton's 25 goals. Incandescent last postseason, McDavid was slowed by L.A.'s mobile defense corps at times yet put up 10 points himself, including a pair in Saturday's madcap 5-4 win. The supporting cast's timely emergence propelled the Oilers to the second round, where they'll face the Pacific Division champion Vegas Golden Knights.

Before the playoffs started, theScore wondered if Mattias Ekholm, the defensive stalwart who debuted with Edmonton in March, would become this season's best trade addition. Korpisalo held the title for about a week. Unafraid to challenge McDavid when he slipped open into shooting range or drove headlong to the crease, the Kings netminder held him goalless at even strength until Saturday and boasted a .931 save percentage through Game 3.

Korpisalo's steadiness, combined with L.A.'s offensive punch, discombobulated Edmonton. Jack Campbell, the backup goalie whose save percentage cratered to .888 this season, relieved Stuart Skinner when desperation spiked in Game 4.

After Campbell shut the door, ensuring a three-goal deficit didn't snowball, Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft returned Skinner to the net for the commanding Game 5 win and narrow Game 6 closeout. Skinner made 40 saves Saturday, a new personal high in his sixth career playoff appearance.

The Oilers are deeper than they used to be. Skinner excelled as a rookie this season over 48 starts. Evan Bouchard, the NHL's top power-play producer in Round 1, is maturing into a force. Porous defensively in the 2020 postseason and unable to buy a goal in the '21 playoffs when McDavid rested, Edmonton added Kane, Hyman, Kostin, Bjugstad, and Ekholm over a two-year span to assist McDavid, Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and blue-line workhorse Darnell Nurse.

The defensive effort against L.A. was imperfect. Paced by Adrian Kempe's five tallies, 11 Kings scored in the series, depressing Skinner's save percentage to .890. The average shot that eluded Skinner at five-on-five was fired from 16.5 feet away, per Natural Stat Trick, signifying the Kings did damage in the low slot and by the blue paint. The Oilers blew three multi-goal leads and only killed 66.7% of their penalties.

Conversely and crucially, Edmonton's power play was dominant. Bouchard factored into eight of the Oilers' nine goals on 16 opportunities. Edmonton received 2.67 man advantages per game, the second-lowest average in the playoffs, meaning it could really light up a less disciplined foe.

Power-play goals from Alex Iafallo in Game 1 and Moore in Game 3 bruised the Oilers' record in playoff overtime. They're 3-10 in the situation in the McDavid and Draisaitl era.

Three teams - the 2017 Anaheim Ducks, the '21 Winnipeg Jets, and these Kings - inflicted multiple OT defeats versus the Oilers. Hyman's Game 4 snipe will be applauded in Edmonton for years to come if it reverses this trend.

Korpisalo and Gavrikov are free agents, but L.A.'s core will return intact for more kicks at the can. McDavid was minimally effective when he squared off against Phillip Danault's line and the Gavrikov-Matt Roy pair. The Kings attacked relentlessly and scored opportunistically, punishing miscues like Skinner's whiffed pass in Saturday's third period. They made the NHL's best offensive club and hottest team since March 1 look vulnerable, though Korpisalo's Round 1 save rate ultimately plunged to .892.

Scarred by past letdowns but bolstered by general manager Ken Holland's wheeling and dealing, the Oilers bounced the Kings without winning any blowouts. Last year, they spanked L.A. by six in back-to-back games. This round started uncomfortably, and that feeling rarely let up, but they finally finished the job, moving four wins closer to the ultimate goal. Vegas awaits.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

By triumphing 4-0 at home Thursday, the New Jersey Devils moved within a win of eliminating the cross-river rival New York Rangers from the Stanley Cup chase. Keep an eye on these four key battlegrounds as the Rangers try to wake up and prolong their season Saturday night in Game 6.

Rangers' shooters vs. Schmid

Of the NHL's 16 playoff qualifiers, only the Devils, Florida Panthers, and Minnesota Wild have started multiple goalies in the first round.

New Jersey's switcheroo was transformative. En route to an embarrassing exit after losing Games 1 and 2 in blowouts, head coach Lindy Ruff yanked Vitek Vanecek and replaced him with the postseason's 22-year-old breakout star. Akira Schmid has stoned 80 of the 82 shots he's faced to rock a .976 save percentage, squeezing the life out of New York's offense while rendering Vanecek's .827 mark irrelevant.

Schmid, the 10th netminder drafted in 2018 at No. 136 overall, was summoned from the AHL this year when injuries befell Vanecek and Mackenzie Blackwood. Schmid's save percentage over 18 games was .922. He pitched a 20-save shutout in relief of Blackwood in the regular-season finale, his first appearance for the Devils in three weeks.

Tapped as Vanecek's backup for the playoffs, Schmid entered the series in Game 3 and narrowly outshone Igor Shesterkin in consecutive goalie duels. His best plays in Game 5 included glove denials of Artemi Panarin's odd-man chance and Kaapo Kakko's mid-air flick. One long Rangers cycle sequence ended when Schmid swallowed Jacob Trouba's point blast, allowing exhausted checker Nico Hischier to slump to the ice.

New York's power play is firing blanks at Schmid. Chris Kreider shelled Vanecek by deflecting in four goals on the Rangers' first seven attempts, but they're now mired in an 0-for-13 slide. Devils penalty killers are rushing Adam Fox at the blue line and bodying Kreider near the net, confident that Schmid will snare any puck he sees.

Shesterkin has been solid in defeat, posting a .924 save percentage across New York's three losses. A dormant offense is his team's issue. Kreider, Patrick Kane, and Mika Zibanejad only generated one scoring chance together at five-on-five in Game 5, per Natural Stat Trick. Slammed by coach Gerard Gallant for their sluggish effort in Game 4, the Rangers were outshot 20-2 in the third period Thursday in a pathetic showing.

Hughes vs. Blueshirts' D

Jack Hughes' hands, shot, evasiveness, and panache have been on display every time he's scored in this round. The 21-year-old center is speedy and stylish, as his breakaway deke of Shesterkin in Game 4 reminded the Madison Square Garden faithful.

Hughes' series-high 21 shots on net include his penalty-shot conversion in the opener and pivotal power-play snipe in Game 3. New Jersey's two-win deficit is a distant memory, but the Devils needed Hughes to drag them into the series at a precarious moment. He chipped in a little in Game 5, drawing the tripping penalty Kane took that led to Erik Haula's tip goal.

Picked first overall in 2019, Hughes already leads his draft class in scoring by a 68-point margin. His rise to superstardom explains how New Jersey, a divisional also-ran for several years, rocketed up the standings this season. Stifling him won't cure all the Rangers' woes, but letting him cook in Game 6 would seal their elimination.

When Hughes rests, Devils defensemen have sparked offense by activating up ice, presenting themselves as threats to shoot as the trailer off the rush. That's how Dougie Hamilton netted the Game 3 overtime winner and Jonas Siegenthaler rewarded Hischier's pinpoint feed in Game 4. Haula, Dawson Mercer, and Ondrej Palat carried the load Thursday to spotlight the Devils' forward depth.

Subdued forwards to watch

Timo Meier, New Jersey's 40-goal sniper and prized deadline acquisition, hasn't recorded a point despite leading the Devils at five-on-five in shots on net and high-danger shot attempts. He paces the team in hits, drawn penalties, and penalty minutes. Meier's been in the mix, teaming with Hischier and Jesper Bratt to cave in the Rangers and post a 79.8% expected goals rate in their shared minutes, per Natural Stat Trick.

Meier endured two four-game pointless skids in the regular season - one with the Sharks in October and one with the Devils in March. He's stuck in his longest drought since November 2019, though it almost ended Thursday. Demoted to the third line, Meier forced Shesterkin to make splendid glove and arm saves and also drew a holding minor, signaling he has the pep in his step to potentially take over Game 6 no matter where he's deployed.

Meanwhile, the Rangers' second line hung on by a thread over the first four games. Outchanced 27-12 when they skated together at five-on-five, Panarin, Vincent Trocheck, and Vladimir Tarasenko somehow held the Devils scoreless and punched in two goals themselves, both when Tarasenko ripped a wrister past Vanecek.

That line's luck waned Thursday. Scored against 39 seconds into Game 5, the trio failed to tap the puck over the goal line during a frenzied third-period scramble. Collectively, those three have accounted for one point over the Rangers' three losses. That's obviously insufficient.

The home-road split

The trend that dictated the outcome of Games 1 through 4 was unpersuasive Thursday. The home team is no longer winless in the series, disappointing the Rangers fans who infiltrated Prudential Center but never had reason to cheer.

Game 5 aside, it makes sense that the hosts have struggled in this matchup. New Jersey's rink is a dozen miles from Madison Square Garden, so travel isn't a slog. The Devils and Rangers both collected more points on the road in the regular season than they did at home. Around the NHL, the visitor has prevailed in 24 of 40 playoff games (60%) contested through Thursday. Four playoff clubs, the Rangers among them, have yet to win at home.

Last year, the road team won a mere 35 of 89 playoff games, triumphing at a 39.3% clip. Road squads went 42-45 (48.3% win rate) in the 2018-19 postseason, the year before pandemic protocols barred fans from arenas. The Rangers bouncing back at MSG is statistically probable, but momentum favors the Devils heading into Game 6.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Seattle Kraken edged the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 in overtime on Monday to square their first-round playoff matchup at two wins apiece. These three questions will shape the Avalanche's fate in the series and determine how close they come to repeating as Stanley Cup winners.

Can Avalanche score first and often?

Certain pillars of the Avalanche's 2022 Cup team either signed elsewhere last summer (Nazem Kadri, Andre Burakovsky) or missed the full year recovering from knee surgery (captain Gabriel Landeskog). The Avs reigned atop the Central Division anyway, despite scoring 32 fewer goals than last season.

Colorado's offense was electric in the '22 playoffs. The Avalanche potted 4.25 goals per game over 20 matchups, the most by a team whose run lasted that long since the 1983 New York Islanders. They outscored the Nashville Predators 21-9 in the first-round sweep that initiated the onslaught.

Seattle's a pluckier opponent, but Colorado's big guns came to play. The forwards who log the heaviest minutes - Mikko Rantanen, Nathan MacKinnon, J.T. Compher, Artturi Lehkonen, and Valeri Nichushkin (who remains out for personal reasons) - have bagged 10 of the club's 12 goals to date. Rantanen's Game 4 equalizer was his fifth tally of the series and ended the Avalanche power play's protracted drought. Of course, Jordan Eberle's power-play goal for the Kraken in overtime was bigger.

Winning offensive-zone faceoffs has sparked the Avalanche at times. Lehkonen and Devon Toews scored off draws to power Colorado's Game 2 comeback. Alex Newhook, a 38.6% faceoff taker for his career, snapped one back to tee up Cale Makar's missile from the point in Game 3. Colorado only controlled 44% of the draws in Game 4, a series low.

Per Natural Stat Trick, MacKinnon leads the series in shots and individual scoring chances, predictably establishing himself as a force. He paced all NHL regulars this season in five-on-five scoring per 60 minutes, producing 3.28 points (for context, Connor McDavid's per-60 rate was 2.71). Outshot 43-22 on Monday, the Avalanche didn't drum up any momentum until MacKinnon's sweet backhand feed helped Rantanen score off the rush.

Colorado's depth diminished up front when Kadri and Burakovsky departed, and Landeskog was shelved. The main cast remained formidable through the rash of injuries that sidelined MacKinnon, Lehkonen, Nichushkin, Makar, and Bowen Byram for weeks at a time. The Avs scored the first goal in an NHL-high 54 games this season, posting an .824 points percentage in those contests.

Pouring it on early and consistently is how they'll contend for the Cup again. Credit the Kraken, who've wrongfooted Colorado by striking first in all four games.

Can Avs manage puck in the D-zone?

Puck-movers abound on Colorado's back end. Makar is a wizard, Toews' decision-making is sound, and Byram and Samuel Girard are renowned for their mobility. Despite this strength, careless puckhandling has stung the Avalanche every time they've started slow in the series and dug a two-goal hole.

Many Seattle tallies have stemmed from failed Colorado breakouts, takeaways in the Avalanche zone, or bounces the Avs mishandled behind the net. A few minutes into Game 4, Rantanen's blind back pass wound up on Brandon Tanev's stick, and Will Borgen promptly wired a one-timer over Alexandar Georgiev's mitt.

The Kraken's offensive approach is no-nonsense. They lack superstar creators but send pucks deep, forecheck doggedly, win one-on-one battles, and attack downhill in transition. That happened in overtime Monday when Lars Eller's offensive-zone turnover enabled Jaden Schwartz to race behind two Colorado defenders and compel Josh Manson to trip him.

Seattle's finishing ability is elite, but the stupendous goals in this matchup - both MacKinnon's breakaway burst and undressing of Ryan Donato in Game 3 come to mind - largely belong to the Avalanche. Conjuring highlights is their domain. Taking greater care of the puck would limit glorious chances against and help spring Colorado's stars up ice.

Can Georgiev shut the door?

Last spring, Darcy Kuemper's .902 postseason save percentage was high enough for him to win the Stanley Cup. He saved minus-7.29 goals above expected in the playoffs, per Evolving-Hockey. Injured in multiple rounds, Kuemper ceded the net at points to backup Pavel Francouz. Colorado was the rare champion that never needed its starting goalie to dominate.

Signed to succeed Kuemper, Georgiev's save percentage has slipped from .919 over 62 regular-season starts to .908 so far against the Kraken.

That said, he's been dependable at key junctures. Georgiev thwarted Yanni Gourde's breakaway attempt and Eberle's odd-man chance in Game 2 with huge pad saves, keeping the Avalanche afloat when they trailed in the series. He stoned Jared McCann in Game 4 a beat before Makar injured the Kraken sniper by ramming him into the boards. Georgiev saved 29 consecutive shots and denied 40 overall before Eberle struck in sudden death.

Philipp Grubauer's .895 save percentage this season was poor, but the Kraken netminder has experience shining in the clutch. Grubauer foiled shots at a .920 rate over 29 playoff starts for Colorado from 2019-21. Georgiev was the busier and better goalie on Monday, a silver lining he'll have to duplicate to submerge Seattle.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Edmonton Oilers rebounded on the road Sunday, erasing a large deficit to stun the Los Angeles Kings 5-4 in overtime and tie their first-round playoff clash at two wins apiece. The series is a best-of-three now, and the answers to these Oilers-centric questions will decide which team prevails.

Will Hyman, Kane, RNH step up again?

Besides Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, five Oilers players have fired the puck past Joonas Korpisalo in the series. Evan Bouchard, Klim Kostin, and Derek Ryan all got on the board before Game 4, during which Zach Hyman saved Edmonton from facing elimination and Evander Kane resembled the shooter who menaced the Kings a year ago.

Upstaging Jonathan Quick, Korpisalo's predecessor in the L.A. net, Kane potted seven goals in the Oilers' Round 1 triumph in 2022. Hyman scored twice in that series and added nine tallies over the rest of Edmonton's playoff run. This year, Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins both obliterated their previous season highs in goals and assists.

Quieted for a few games, the stars of Edmonton's supporting cast finally broke out Sunday. Nugent-Hopkins fed Draisaitl in the slot to set up his power-play goal. Kane's equalizer in the third period exposed Korpisalo's glove hand. The Kings outchanced the Oilers 18-10 in Hyman's five-on-five shifts, per Natural Stat Trick, but Bouchard's pinpoint outlet pass in overtime sprung him to beat Korpisalo through the goalie's blocking arm.

It's vital they keep producing. L.A.'s Adrian Kempe (three goals in the series) remains an Edmonton killer. Alex Iafallo, Gabriel Vilardi, and Trevor Moore have provided additional scoring. Viktor Arvidsson has dished four assists, all of them in clutch moments. By supporting Anze Kopitar, the Kings' offensive fulcrum, these players compensated for the absence of point-per-night dynamo Kevin Fiala through the first three games.

Can Oilers triumph on special teams?

Edmonton's record-setting power play paces the playoffs in efficiency. The Oilers have scored on six of 11 chances throughout the series (54.5%), dwarfing their own 32.4% regular-season conversion rate that made NHL history. Bouchard's bomb from the point and Draisaitl's short-side snipe keyed Edmonton's three-goal comeback Sunday.

L.A.'s power play has clicked on five of 17 attempts (29.4%). Avoidable stick infractions have put Edmonton a man down before every crushing goal the Kings have scored, including the tying tallies in Games 1 and 3 and each of L.A.'s subsequent overtime game-winners. Draisaitl might regret slashing Drew Doughty during a goal celebration if the Oilers don't advance.

The Kings are equipped for this battleground. Their power play ranked fourth in the NHL this season. Only six teams league-wide drew more penalties. Arvidsson's seam passes have eluded Oilers sticks and caused trouble throughout the series for Stuart Skinner, who yielded the net to Jack Campbell in Sunday's first intermission after Kopitar deked him during five-on-four play.

If Edmonton is to pull ahead, leveling the penalty differential is imperative. McDavid has drawn a series-high three minors, and he's done damage when L.A. visits the sin bin: Both of his goals came on the power play 100 seconds apart in Game 3 when he ripped wristers past Korpisalo from the left faceoff circle.

Will McDavid burn L.A.'s defense?

A lot of the offense McDavid creates stems from his charges into the offensive zone. Handling the puck on a string, the Oilers captain dangles defenders at top speed to create space to score. To emerge unscathed from those terrifying sequences, a team has to get sticks and bodies - ideally five at a time - in his way.

The opposing goalie is the last line of defense. Korpisalo, whose save percentage for the series remains solid at .918, has denied all 11 of McDavid's shots at even strength. Some were tuck-in attempts off solo rushes that would have expanded McDavid's highlight reel.

Poised and fleet of foot, the Kings' defensemen have mostly stayed in sync with each other and in front of McDavid when he pressures them in transition. The notable exception was Mikey Anderson in Game 1. Kempe and Kopitar slipped up late in regulation of Game 4, letting McDavid gain the zone and sneak the puck through their sticks to facilitate Kane's equalizer.

McDavid's 30:22 of ice time on Sunday led the team and was his highest mark this season. Edmonton has effectively played with 10 forwards in back-to-back games, scratching one more than usual and benching Kostin for prolonged stretches. For the first time in the series, head coach Jay Woodcroft deployed McDavid with Draisaitl throughout Game 4, and the Oilers outscored the Kings 3-0 during their shared five-on-five minutes.

Can Edmonton sustain a lead?

No lead is safe in this series.

The Oilers bagged two rapid goals to open Game 1 but failed to preserve the advantage and fell short in OT. Edmonton squandered another 2-0 edge in Game 2 before Kostin's third-period winner made the difference. Game 3, the first contest to see the Kings hold a lead, went back and forth until Moore struck in sudden death. The clubs exchanged three-goal periods in Game 4 to set the stage for Hyman's heroics.

Like most teams, the Oilers rarely lose when they score first (32-8-4 in the regular season for a .773 points percentage) or lead entering the third frame (34-1-5, .913). They ranked first in the NHL in both first-period goals (1.12 per game) and second-period tallies (1.56 per game). Controlling the game from wire to wire, as they're capable of doing, reduces angst and demoralizes the opponent.

Composed and dogged, the Kings don't fret when they start slow, trail late, or lose a lead at any point. Coolheadedness helped them rally to tie the opener, tighten up in Game 3 following McDavid's power-play eruption, and score in two of three overtime sessions.

The Oilers laughed last on Sunday. If they net the icebreaker in Game 5, maybe they'll maintain the lead this time and push L.A. to the brink.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Golden Knights bounced back at home Thursday, topping the Jets 5-2 to knot their first-round playoff series at a win apiece. Keep an eye on these seven important players when the matchup moves north for Games 3 and 4.

Mark Stone

The downside of activating a star from long-term injury reserve as the playoffs begin, conveniently enabling his team to blow past the salary cap, is the player may need time to ramp up to his peak.

Stone looked rusty in Game 1, his first appearance in three months following back surgery. He forced some giveaways, flashing his signature defensive skill, but Vegas was severely outplayed and got outscored 2-0 in his five-on-five shifts.

Game 2 was different. Stone shone in the third period, firing a smart feed that led to Chandler Stephenson's winner before he drove the net and slipped open in the slot to pot a pair of insurance goals.

Stone scored efficiently this season before he went under the knife. He ranked third on the Golden Knights in points per 60 minutes at five-on-five and almost cracked the top 50 league-wide. Born and raised in Winnipeg, Stone building on his Game 2 breakout in his hometown would be massive for Vegas.

Pierre-Luc Dubois

Adam Lowry's three goals lead the series, but it was Dubois who set the tone for Winnipeg's opening 5-1 win.

The top-line center threw eight hits, saucered passes into scoring areas, and either set up or tallied the Jets' crucial first two goals in Game 1. Feeling himself, Dubois chirped Vegas goalie Laurent Brossoit as he left one celebration circle.

The most noticeable Jet in the opener was quieter Thursday, though Dubois, Kyle Connor, and Mark Scheifele did create 11 of Winnipeg's 20 scoring chances at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick. The Jets owned the neutral zone in the first period and attacked with speed, enabling the Dubois line to pelt Brossoit with shots during the squad's finest spell of play.

Dubois has been a beast in the playoffs before. Bullying the Maple Leafs in the 2020 bubble, he scored a hat trick in one memorable Blue Jackets win but entered this round mired in an 11-game playoff goal drought. Dubois oozes confidence when he's at his best, supplying the swagger the Jets lacked as they slid to eighth place in the Western Conference.

Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault

The Golden Knights' offensive headliners personify the two phases of the franchise's growth. An original Golden Misfit, Marchessault's star turn in the 2017-18 expansion season helped Vegas knock off Winnipeg to reach the Stanley Cup Final. Eichel was a blockbuster trade addition brought in to make Vegas a perennial contender.

Lacking urgency, Eichel posted poor shot metrics in Game 1, his career playoff debut. Marchessault produced a secondary assist but didn't put a shot on target. The agitated home crowd booed a futile late power-play attempt when Eichel and a few teammates cycled the puck aimlessly.

Eichel awakened on Thursday. He scored on a dexterous tip, his drives to the net induced multiple penalty calls, and he rang a slapper off Connor Hellebuyck's mask that cut the goalie on the eyebrow.

A dozen Vegas skaters netted 10-plus goals this season, but besides Reilly Smith, only Eichel and Marchessault bagged more than 20. It's vital they drive play when head coach Bruce Cassidy deploys them together.

Josh Morrissey and Dylan DeMelo

Morrissey, Winnipeg's power-play conductor and most dynamic defenseman, scored 76 points out of the blue in 2022-23 to double his previous career high. DeMelo, the Jets' top pair's defensive conscience, helped tilt the ice (53.7% expected goals share) when he skated with Morrissey at five-on-five over the past two years.

Steady in the series, they've only been on the ice for one Vegas goal apiece. Both defensemen have recorded an assist. Beautifying the little things, Morrissey dislodged pucks from sticks and completed short, savvy passes that sparked Jets breakouts, but he didn't bend either game in Vegas to his will.

Vegas' defense corps is big, battle-tested, and fairly skilled. Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore earned downballot Norris Trophy votes in recent seasons. That Morrissey leveled up to vie for the award himself this year means he's capable of being this matchup's best blue-liner. Now's the time to make it happen.

Connor Hellebuyck

Back when Brossoit was Hellebuyck's teammate, he received all of 45 starts over his three seasons as the Jets’ backup goalie. Durable and dazzling, Hellebuyck denies his partners regular playing time and can win a series practically by himself.

Hellebuyck’s .920 save percentage was fourth-best this season among NHL regulars, per Natural Stat Trick. However, his save percentage on the penalty kill (.884) was pedestrian and his save rate on high-danger shots (.828) ranked 28th league-wide.

The Golden Knights need to exploit those vulnerabilities. They're 0-for-7 overall with the man advantage, but they lit up Hellebuyck in Game 2 by continually getting the puck to the goalmouth or other dangerous areas.

Hellebuyck is credited with every postseason win in Jets franchise history. No Western Conference playoff goalie is as experienced or formidable. By the standings, the Jets entered this series as 16-point underdogs, but it won't feel that way if Hellebuyck rebounds to dominate on home ice.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Alexandar Georgiev rode the pine last spring as Igor Shesterkin backstopped the Rangers to the conference finals. The Lightning eliminated New York, then lost the championship series to the Avalanche, who dealt draft picks to land Georgiev so that he could help them defend the Stanley Cup.

Filip Gustavsson pondered returning to his native Sweden when his North American pro career got off to a middling start. Shaky for much of his time with the Senators, Gustavsson was traded to the Wild last summer, and his stock has soared ever since.

Stuart Skinner wears the unconventional jersey number 74 because his older brothers Stephen, Scott, and Sheldon sported similar digits, he told The Athletic's Daniel Nugent-Bowman. The youngest of nine siblings, Skinner was the Oilers' second-choice netminder back in the fall, but the spotlight now beams on him alone.

Unproven goaltenders control postseason destinies in the Western Conference. Puck-stoppers with scant playoff experience, like the above trio, Stars prodigy Jake Oettinger, and Kings deadline acquisition Joonas Korpisalo, could wind up deciding who competes for the Cup if they shine or stumble in pressurized moments.

Fans of rival teams are still getting to know them. Half of the West's Game 1 goalies never started in the playoffs before this week. Oettinger and Korpisalo had yet to reach 10 playoff appearances. Gustavsson and Skinner, the West's postseason debutants, are 24 years old - six years younger than Panthers journeyman Alex Lyon, the East bracket's lone newcomer.

Golden Knights rookie Logan Thompson would've been part of this cohort if he didn't aggravate a lower-body injury in March. Vegas is starting Laurent Brossoit in his place instead of Jonathan Quick, the aging former Conn Smythe Trophy recipient whose decline in 2022-23 hastened a broader generational turnover.

Quick and Mike Smith manned the creases in 2022 when the Kings and Oilers clashed in the opening round. Marc-Andre Fleury split starts with Cam Talbot to ill effect as the Wild crashed out of the playoffs in six games. Darcy Kuemper won the Cup with Colorado the month after he turned 32, then departed in free agency when the Avalanche tapped Georgiev as a cheaper, fresh-faced replacement.

The Stars leaned on grizzled thirtysomething goalies - first Kari Lehtonen, then Ben Bishop, then Anton Khudobin - when they won rounds in recent postseasons. Wasting little time, Oettinger, who's also 24, inherited the top job from Khudobin by his second NHL campaign.

West contenders believe in the kids for good reason. Dallas coaches and teammates assured theScore's John Matisz that Oettinger's confidence never wavers. Heroic in defeat against the Flames last year, Oettinger's 64 saves in Game 7 forced double overtime in an epic contest and increased his save percentage in the series to .954.

Oettinger and Georgiev were two of the seven workhorses across the league who made 60 starts in net this season. That duo, Gustavsson, Skinner, and Korpisalo all ranked in the top 15 in goals saved above expected, per Evolving-Hockey. Jack Campbell's .888 save percentage alarmed Edmontonians, but Skinner's .914 denial rate over 48 starts helped restore faith in the Oilers and strengthened his Calder Trophy candidacy.

Skinner has slumped in Edmonton's rematch with Los Angeles, though not egregiously. A one-timer trickled under his glove as Game 1 waned, permitting the Kings to tie the score and eventually prevail in overtime. His inability to seal the post multiple times in Game 2 induced jitters before the Oilers rebounded to win. Both Skinner and Korpisalo have given up six goals in the series despite Edmonton aiming 18 more shots on net.

Korpisalo's playoff exploits include making 85 saves one night in the 2020 bubble - the Lightning beat his Blue Jackets in the fifth OT period - and holding Connor McDavid scoreless on 11 shots in this round. The Kings ranked 31st in team save percentage when they swapped Quick for him on March 1, then ranked fifth in the stat from Korpisalo's debut onward, according to Natural Stat Trick. Leon Draisaitl (three goals) is the only Oiler who's troubled him consistently.

Over in the Stars-Wild matchup, Oettinger's .919 save percentage through two games is strong, while Minnesota's decision to stick steadfast to its goalie rotation backfired Wednesday.

Benching Gustavsson after his 51-save masterpiece keyed a win in double overtime, Wild head coach Dean Evason watched Fleury let in seven goals, some of them stinkers, on 31 shots as Dallas knotted the series. Fleury said postgame that his performance was embarrassing.

The math suggests the Wild should ride Gustavsson, the substantially better goalie this season. His .931 save percentage dwarfed Fleury's .908 mark, and he saved many more goals above expected (24.54 to 0.86) behind the same defense. Gustavsson and Oettinger are the only goalies aged 24 or younger to record 50 saves in the playoffs since 2010, per Stathead. They'll duel in Game 3 and beyond if Evason smartens up.

As with Brossoit, Georgiev's exposure to the playoffs prior to this week was limited to a few periods of mop-up duty. Neither goalie's first start went as planned. Four of Brossoit's former Jets teammates fired pucks past him in the Golden Knights' Game 1 setback. Kraken veteran Philipp Grubauer outshone Georgiev in Seattle's 3-1 win, stopping 10 of the Avalanche's 11 high-danger shots on net as part of a sparkling 34-save effort.

Favored heavily in that series, Colorado needs Grubauer to wilt or Georgiev to stand taller to avoid digging a deep deficit. Connor Hellebuyck, whose 16 saves against Vegas enabled Winnipeg to cruise to victory, familiarized Brossoit with the standard of netminding required to stifle a talented foe.

Long, exhilarating runs remain in reach if these playoff novices uplift their teams in the clutch. The opponent will advance if they falter. Let's see what they can do.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Los Angeles Kings struck first in their playoff rematch with the Edmonton Oilers, rallying to erase multiple two-goal deficits and prevail 4-3 in overtime in Game 1. The outcomes of these three matchups powered L.A. to victory in Monday's spirited series opener.

Draisaitl dazzled, McDavid didn't

Leon Draisaitl produced two points per postseason contest on a compromised ankle last spring. Connor McDavid one-upped him, tallying 33 points in a magisterial 16-game playoff run that gobsmacked fans everywhere. After the Oilers superstars both set personal scoring bests this season, they were positioned to pick up right where they left off in 2022.

Four slipups nearly doomed the Kings on Monday. Moving freely, Draisaitl snuck unnoticed into the slot before rifling the series' first goal past Joonas Korpisalo. McDavid stripped the puck from and then sped by Drew Doughty, then dangled Mikey Anderson to induce two obstruction penalties in the span of 30 seconds, setting up Evan Bouchard to score at five-on-three. Draisaitl scored again later when all five Los Angeles defenders lost track of the puck in a scramble.

Those miscues didn't wind up mattering. Game 1 tightened up when Vladislav Gavrikov's deflection of a McDavid pass sparked Adrian Kempe's backhand goal. Quinton Byfield drew back-to-back penalties and poked the puck to Kempe to tee up his second snipe of the third period, inciting Edmonton's collapse. Admirably resilient, L.A.'s defensemen stayed square to McDavid on many of his rushes, holding him pointless as they bought time to tie the score.

Few teams curbed Edmonton's big guns in 2022-23. Draisaitl's 128 points equaled the previous season high in the salary-cap era. McDavid recorded 153 points, blowing out his sidekick and the rest of the league.

These two stars are unstoppable, so beating Edmonton starts with limiting the damage they inflict. Burned in the first period and showered with boos whenever he touched the puck, Doughty shoved McDavid to the ice as L.A. mounted its comeback, fulfilling his promise to "smack" No. 97 if the chance presented itself. Mission accomplished in Game 1.

Kings delivered on special teams

The tale of the tape in this phase of the game favors the Oilers, whose power play scored every third time it vaulted the boards this season. But L.A.'s power play ranked fourth and is one of few league-wide that can threaten to match Edmonton's unit shot for shot.

Both teams are subpar on the penalty kill, though the Oilers potted 18 shorthanded goals for an NHL high since 2006, per Stathead. Korpisalo stoned Mattias Janmark during an Edmonton penalty kill in Game 1 after backpedaling defenseman Sean Durzi astutely blanketed McDavid to deny a cross-ice pass.

The Kings hung in the game long enough to punish Edmonton's indiscipline. The Oilers' commitment to blocking shots snuffed out four Kings power-play attempts, but Anze Kopitar scored on the fifth try with Bouchard in the box for high-sticking, capitalizing 16.7 seconds before regulation ended. When Vincent Desharnais lost body position and tripped Blake Lizotte in OT, Alex Iafallo sniped from the bumper spot to finish a clinical tic-tac-toe passing play.

How McDavid is officiated in the series is a storyline to monitor. The NHL leader in drawn penalties over the past two seasons, McDavid infamously didn't earn a single call in 2021 when the Winnipeg Jets swept Edmonton in Round 1. The Kings took four minors trying to deal with his speed and shiftiness last year. The same issues arose Monday when Doughty hooked McDavid and Anderson hugged him to avoid being posterized.

McDavid racked up 71 power-play points during the regular season, the most in the league since 1996. He would have ranked 57th among NHL scorers if he never played a shift at even strength or shorthanded. Draisaitl, meanwhile, set a record by netting a power-play goal in 31 different games. Their dominance in such situations should clinch Edmonton some playoff wins, but the Oilers' five-on-three was their only significant opportunity in the opener.

Korpisalo made the extra save

The veteran goalies who previously led these teams on deep postseason runs - Mike Smith for Edmonton, two-time Stanley Cup champion Jonathan Quick for L.A. - have been replaced by fresh faces.

Stuart Skinner might win the Calder Trophy because he stabilized the Oilers when Jack Campbell slumped this season. Acquired for Quick at the trade deadline, Korpisalo established himself as the Kings' steadiest hand in net over 11 appearances. Counting his time with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Korpisalo ranked 13th in save percentage and ninth in quality start percentage among goalies who made 30-plus starts, according to Hockey Reference.

Korpisalo settled in Monday to offset Edmonton's hot start. Beaten just once in the final 56 minutes, he stopped 11 shots in overtime to expand his save total to 37. Skinner, who posted a .951 save percentage over four April appearances, was positionally sound and stopped 31 shots. But he let in four of the last 17 he faced, faltering for the first time in weeks.

Alternately brilliant and beatable - sometimes within the same period - Smith's goaltending in the playoffs was a wild ride. Quick's performance fell off a cliff in his age-37 season. His replacement was marginally better than Skinner on Monday, putting pressure on the rookie to bounce back as this duel continues.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The quest to hoist the Stanley Cup begins Monday. These storylines will affect the championship hopes of the eight teams in the Eastern Conference playoff bracket. (Click to read our breakdown of the Western qualifiers.)

Boston Bruins
Can they avoid the Presidents' Trophy letdown?

The regular-season champion hasn't won the Stanley Cup in a decade or advanced past the second round since 2015. Juggernaut Capitals, Lightning, and Panthers teams reached the 120-point plateau in that span but crumbled when adversity struck in the postseason, most infamously when the Columbus Blue Jackets swept Tampa Bay four years ago.

Those squads weren't the 2022-23 Bruins, whose dominance (65 wins, 135 points) broke NHL records. At plus-128, their goal differential almost doubled that of the second-place Dallas Stars at plus-67. No team in the cap era has iced more 50-point scorers than Boston's eight, according to Stathead. The Bruins' edge in team save percentage over the second-place New York Islanders - .929 to .915 - was as vast as the gap between New York and the 15th-ranked club.

Boston is bulletproof if Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman, who have started a combined seven career playoff games, keep shining in net. The Blue Jackets lit up Andrei Vasilevskiy for 15 goals in four games at the bitter end of his 2019 Vezina Trophy season. Only a comparable - and comparably surprising - barrage would trouble the Bruins.

Florida Panthers
Can the defensemen keep scoring?

Three blue-liners are especially important to the Panthers' playoff hopes: Aaron Ekblad, Gustav Forsling, and emergent sniper and power-play quarterback Brandon Montour. Florida ranks second in the NHL behind the Carolina Hurricanes with 53 goals by defensemen, and those three combined for 43 of them. No other team has three 10-goal players at the position, according to Stathead.

The Panthers rely heavily on this trio, with each member playing more than 23 minutes nightly. Capitalizing on MacKenzie Weegar's departure, Montour scored 73 points to double his previous career high and surge to fifth among NHL defensemen. Erik Karlsson, the 100-point supernova, recorded fewer points than Montour since March 1.

Sixth in scoring but 21st in goals allowed, the Panthers need to pop offensively to orchestrate an upset. They scored five goals or more in 20 games this season, winning all but one, and conceded that many in 24 contests, losing all but one. The forwards who skate with Matthew Tkachuk are safe bets to produce, but the defense corps also has to chip in.

Toronto Maple Leafs
How will the new additions perform?

Five forwards and the netminder who dressed in Toronto's 2022 playoff finale are no longer with the Maple Leafs. On defense, Ilya Lyubushkin also moved on, and Jake Muzzin is out for the season. General manager Kyle Dubas' raft of acquisitions could either no-show against the Lightning or power a long-awaited breakthrough.

Ilya Samsonov put up career numbers (.919 save percentage, 21.24 goals saved above expected) this season, inspiring confidence over his 40 starts. Defenseman Jake McCabe will be counted on to hound Tampa Bay's top scorers. Beyond college signee Matthew Knies, the forwards to watch include 20-goal winger Calle Jarnkrok and former Conn Smythe Trophy winner Ryan O'Reilly, who will center either the second line or a checking trio.

Toronto's core tends to buckle in the biggest moments. Ousted in six straight opening rounds and losers of five consecutive winner-take-all games, the Maple Leafs potted one goal or fewer in each of their last four elimination defeats. Failing to advance with this revamped lineup could get Dubas fired - and trigger many more changes.

Tampa Bay Lightning
Will Vasilevskiy play to his peak?

Consistently indomitable, Vasilevskiy posted a save percentage of .930 or better in seven of Tampa Bay's last 12 playoff series. No team has shelled him in the postseason since 2019, and the defending champion Avalanche alone managed to beat him four times.

The Maple Leafs have reason to believe he's vulnerable. In defeat last spring, they inflicted his worst save percentage in a playoff round (.897) since the Columbus debacle. The Lightning fell from sixth place in goals against last season to 14th in 2022-23. Losing nine of Vasilevskiy's 15 starts in March and April exacerbated their late-year slide and handed Toronto home-ice advantage in Round 1.

By one key metric, though, the seven-year starter just authored his greatest season. Vasilevskiy saved 26.41 goals above expected, according to Evolving Hockey, signaling that he could offset the Lightning's defensive slip and be the MVP of any matchup.

Carolina Hurricanes
Can defensive structure make up for losing Svechnikov?

The Islanders were the only Eastern playoff club to score fewer goals than the Hurricanes this season. Injuries are partly to blame: Back-to-back Achilles tears befell Max Pacioretty, limiting him to five games, while Andrei Svechnikov bowed out for the year in mid-March with a torn ACL.

The rare dynamo for a defensive powerhouse, Svechnikov is the Hurricanes' second-leading goal and point producer over the past five seasons, trailing Sebastian Aho. Without him, Carolina must constrict and dispirit opposing shooters. The Hurricanes permit the fewest shots and scoring chances in the league, per Natural Stat Trick, which is why they ranked second in goals allowed despite a middling .902 team save percentage.

Head coach Rod Brind'Amour's vaunted defensive structure has shown cracks. Carolina ranked 12th in goals against per game after Svechnikov got hurt. They were 26th in scoring in that period and went 9-8-1.

New York Islanders
Are improvements made without Barzal sustainable?

Mathew Barzal, raiser of the Islanders' offensive ceiling during recent deep playoff runs, is about to return after missing two months with a lower-body injury. New York took off when he went down, recording a .534 points percentage before Barzal exited the lineup on Feb. 18 and improving to .652 ever since.

Tightening up keyed the turnaround. Before Barzal's injury, the Islanders allowed more five-on-five scoring chances and high-danger shot attempts than every team except the lowly Anaheim Ducks, according to Natural Stat Trick. Ilya Sorokin's .928 save percentage propped them up. But New York has limited such chances at a top-10 rate since the injury, and Sorokin's five-on-five save percentage in the span has climbed to .934.

Sorokin astonished this season by saving 51.36 goals above expected, the most league-wide since 2010, per Evolving-Hockey. The Islanders, meanwhile, scored 0.19 more goals per game without Barzal despite their power play running on fumes (10.9% conversion rate after Feb. 18). Kyle Palmieri, Hudson Fasching, and Pierre Engvall are among the forwards who elevated their play to support Brock Nelson in his 75-point career year.

New Jersey Devils
How much does inexperience matter?

Four of the Devils' most prolific forwards - Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt, and Dawson Mercer - are between 21 and 24 years old with either minimal or zero playoff experience. Key contributors at every position, from Yegor Sharangovich to Damon Severson to goalie Vitek Vanecek, have never or barely appeared on the stage.

This isn't a roster-wide issue. Timo Meier, Dougie Hamilton, and Ryan Graves all embarked on deep runs with their previous teams. Ondrej Palat and Erik Haula have competed in the Stanley Cup Final. New Jersey is a genuine threat, ranking second behind Boston in Hockey Reference's Simple Rating System. But this is the first significant test for the young core and parts of the supporting cast.

By tallying 99, Hughes put up the ninth-most points in a season for a player aged 21 or younger since the 2005 lockout, per Stathead. Three stars who earned higher spots on the list made their playoff debuts that same year, variously losing in Round 1 (Sidney Crosby in 2007), falling in Game 7 of the second round (Connor McDavid in 2017), and surging to a championship (Eric Staal in 2006).

New York Rangers
Can Kane, Tarasenko summon playoff magic?

Two departed forwards, Andrew Copp and Frank Vatrano, were among the six Rangers players who hit double digits in points during last year's charge to the Eastern Conference Final. Depth scoring can swing a series, and with that in mind, general manager Chris Drury traded draft capital before the deadline to bring in starrier rentals.

New York's .667 points percentage since March 2, the night of Patrick Kane's debut, led the Metropolitan Division in that span. Vladimir Tarasenko, another Stanley Cup champion, compiled a five-game point streak in April. Mika Zibanejad, Artemi Panarin, Chris Kreider, and Vincent Trocheck all continue to produce, giving the Rangers enviable firepower up front.

Kane ranks fifth among active NHLers in career playoff goals and points. Tarasenko is 16th on the goals leaderboard. In Drury's dream scenario, they deliver in the clutch and deliver the Stanley Cup to Manhattan.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The quest to hoist the Stanley Cup begins Monday. These storylines will affect the championship hopes of the eight teams in the Western Conference playoff bracket. (Click to read our breakdown of the Eastern qualifiers.)

Vegas Golden Knights
Will Eichel seize the moment?

Through the ankle sprains and the herniated disk that estranged him from the Sabres, Jack Eichel made 476 appearances over eight years without ever touching the ice in the playoffs.

He finally got there. Eichel mostly stayed healthy as the Golden Knights won the Pacific Division to atone for falling short of the 2022 playoffs. Buffalo's erstwhile captain sparked Vegas offensively with 66 points in 67 games. That made up for trusty load-bearers Mark Stone and Shea Theodore missing months apiece.

The Golden Knights strung together two spells of elite play. They opened the regular season 13-2-0, then compiled a 22-4-5 record after the All-Star break. Their points percentage with Eichel in the lineup was .694. That extrapolates to a 114-point pace over 82 games and positions Vegas for a Stanley Cup push if Eichel can be clutch.

Winnipeg Jets
Can scorers build on late-year resurgence?

Winnipeg's decline from February onward was steep. The Jets played .500 hockey over their final 30 games to rank 12th in the West in that span after placing second at the All-Star break, only outshining teams that tanked for Connor Bedard. Their per-game goals rate plunged from 3.19 before the break to 2.67.

Winnipeg's top forwards slumped en masse. Pierre-Luc Dubois produced 2.05 points per 60 minutes ahead of the break, then managed 1.07 afterward. Nikolaj Ehlers' per-60 splits were 3.49 points and 2.28. Kyle Connor (2.32, 1.48) endured an 11-game goal drought. Blake Wheeler (2.10, 1.95) scored once in his last 27 appearances.

A recent uptick restored momentum and hope. The Jets won five of seven games to end the season as Connor, Dubois, and Ehlers combined with Mark Scheifele to net a dozen goals. Fresh off setting a career high in goals saved above expected (33.62), Connor Hellebuyck could steal a series if he gets enough offensive help.

Edmonton Oilers
Will Ekholm be the best deadline acquisition?

Splashy midseason trades routed many of the top forwards on the market - including Bo Horvat, Timo Meier, Ryan O'Reilly, and Patrick Kane - from Western Conference also-rans to Eastern contenders. The West's Cup hopefuls were comparably quiet, but Edmonton's biggest move has been transformative.

Mattias Ekholm, the grizzled longtime Predators blue-liner, has impressed since he swapped places with Tyson Barrie. He ranked fifth on the Oilers in points since the Feb. 28 deal and tilted the ice in the top-pair minutes he shouldered. Edmonton outscored teams 27-8 during Ekholm's five-on-five shifts with partner Evan Bouchard, per Natural Stat Trick. Darnell Nurse's workload lightened, which was a welcome bonus.

Anemic secondary scoring and shaky defensive play in recent postseasons prevented Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl from engineering Cup runs. That could change this spring. Edmonton's .881 points percentage and plus-37 goal differential in Ekholm's 21 games were NHL highs, affirming that these Oilers are a force to fear.

Los Angeles Kings
Will they win the special-teams battle?

There's a chasm in quality between the Kings' fourth-ranked power play in the NHL (25.3% conversion rate) and their penalty kill, which operated at 75.8%. No Western playoff team's kill was worse.

Contributors abound on L.A.'s power play. The Kings led the NHL in 20-point-scorers (six), 10-point-scorers (eight), and seven-goal-scorers (six) in that phase, democratizing who could make a difference. On the PK, the Pheonix Copley-Joonas Korpisalo tandem's .852 save percentage is praiseworthy because it dwarfs the combined .804 mark that Jonathan Quick and Cal Petersen posted before Korpisalo was acquired.

How they fare on special teams could shape the Kings' playoff destiny. Edmonton's power play outscored L.A.'s unit 7-3 in the teams' first-round clash a year ago, when the Kings were shut out and lost narrowly in Game 7.

Colorado Avalanche
Can Byram maintain his scoring touch?

Concussion issues and other ailments limited Bowen Byram to 42 appearances this season and 91 NHL games over his first three years. But he was a pivotal part of Colorado's Stanley Cup defense corps. Byram excelled as the No. 3 guy on the depth chart last year when Samuel Girard was knocked out of the playoffs with a broken sternum.

Almost every key Colorado player missed extended time this season, including Cale Makar recently. Byram stepped up when healthy. Skating for 22 minutes a night, he scored in three straight games toward the end of March to increase his goal total to 10 and rise to fifth among NHL defensemen in goals per contest. The lion's share of his production (17 of 24 points) came at even strength.

Offseason departures and the injury bug didn't stop the Avalanche from reaching 50 wins again. Internal growth in the form of Byram's offensive spark gives them unique scoring depth on the back end. Opponents can't relax even when Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, and the Makar-Devon Toews pair are off the ice.

Seattle Kraken
Will they keep scoring prolifically?

Seattle's offense is historically balanced. No team in the cap era iced more 30-point-scorers (13) or more 25-point-scorers (17) than Dave Hakstol's club, per Stathead. Zero Kraken point-producers finished in the top 50 league-wide, but the entire lineup can threaten to light the lamp on any shift.

Seattle ranked 10th in shot attempts and was first by a wide margin at five-on-five in shooting percentage (10.3%), per Natural Stat Trick. Clinical finishers, the Kraken scored 32.6 goals above expected, as tracked by MoneyPuck, the NHL's sixth-highest figure over the past 10 seasons. Burying chances at that rate is paramount because the Kraken's goaltending is the worst among playoff qualifiers (.886 team save percentage).

Only five squads that advanced past Round 1 shot better than 10% at five-on-five over the past 15 postseasons. It'd be abnormal if the Kraken remain this hot, though maybe that's to be expected from a unique team with depth that's a safeguard against individual slumps.

Dallas Stars
Is Robertson ready for his close-up?

Even when Mike Modano was at the peak of his powers, no Stars skater ever racked up 100 points in a Dallas uniform. Jason Robertson's 109-point breakout season pushed boundaries and established the superstar winger as a multidimensional offensive weapon.

Robertson's 46 goals, the NHL's seventh-most, constitute a new career high. His 63 assists shattered his previous personal best. Dallas' first line - Roope Hintz between Robertson and Joe Pavelski - generated a splendid 59.2% expected goals share over a league-high 765 minutes together, according to MoneyPuck. Over the past two seasons, Robertson's been on the ice for 44% of Stars tallies at even strength, per Natural Stat Trick.

The offense runs through him, but Robertson only scored once on 16 shots when the Flames bounced Dallas in seven games last postseason. A second Cup Final appearance in four years is attainable if Robertson averts another untimely slump and Miro Heiskanen and Jake Oettinger, fellow pillars of the Stars' sublime 2017 draft class, shine in their roles.

Minnesota Wild
Will Gustavsson flourish in playoff debut?

Acquired from Ottawa last summer for a veteran in decline, Filip Gustavsson outplayed his aging tandem partner in Minnesota this season. Gustavsson's save percentage over 39 games was .931. He saved 24.54 goals above expected, per Evolving Hockey, to rank seventh in the league. Gustavsson made a stingy defensive team even harder to beat.

Nominal Wild starter Marc-Andre Fleury saved 0.86 goals above expected. Cam Talbot, who went to the Senators, saved 0.30. They put up pedestrian numbers while Gustavsson flashed star potential at 24 years old, rewarding general manager Bill Guerin's foresight.

Gustavsson made three straight starts twice this year and twice before that in his career, according to HockeyGoalies.org. He's appeared in 66 regular-season games to Fleury's 985 and has no playoff experience. That might prompt head coach Dean Evason to keep rotating his goalies, but Gustavsson has earned the chance to monopolize the crease.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.