EDMONTON – One moment can change everything. 

That certainly rings true for Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers.

They booted the Los Angeles Kings out of the first round of the playoffs for the fourth straight year. This time around, they eliminated them in six games.

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It was the cherry on top of a rewarding stretch of games for the Oilers. After dropping the first two contests, they came roaring back with four straight victories.

And it all started with one moment.

It was Game 3, and the Oilers were down 4-3 to begin the third period. With around seven minutes left in the period, the Oilers were cooking in the Kings' end with some good zone time. There was chaos around the net. McDavid came around the net and threw the puck toward the crease, and Evander Kane magically deposited it into the net.

The Moment That Changed Everything For The Oilers

After looking at the play, Kings’ head coach Jim Hiller decides to challenge the goal for goaltender interference. The referees review the sequence and then determine that there was no goalie interference. The Oilers go on the powerplay with the game tied 4-4.

Evan Bouchard tips a Leon Draisaitl shot for a goal, 10 seconds into the man advantage. The Oilers are now up 5-4. They would add two empty-net goals to secure a 7-4 victory.

For the rest of the series, after that moment, the Oilers dominated play for long stretches.

After a review for a kicking motion AND a challenge for goaltender interference, Evander Kane gets his first of the playoffs.

The official call is that Kane kicked the puck to his stick and was able to shoot it before it went in. pic.twitter.com/Aw0y3ZgMVJ

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) April 26, 2025

Many people online wondered if that coach’s challenge would change the series. It looks like every single one of those people was right.

The Kings didn’t look the same after that play. After the first three games, Adrian Kempe, their top point producer, only recorded one assist in Games 4, 5, and 6.

The “Oilers Killer” had nine points in the first three games, four of which were goals.

Whether the Oilers played exceptional defense and neutralized the Kings, or the Kings lost steam and motivation against a team that has had their number for a long time (or a combination of the two), the two teams never looked the same.

And now, the Oilers face a new challenge: the Vegas Golden Knights.

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The Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Minnesota Wild 4-2 in the opening round of the playoffs, setting themselves up for a rematch with the Edmonton Oilers.

The Oilers defeated the Los Angeles Kings in six games despite losing the first two games of the series. Their opening-round matchup was filled with goals, shaky defence and at times, awful goaltending. The series was ultimately decided by the best player in the NHL, Connor McDavid, willing the Oilers to win.

The Golden Knights' opening round series was a bit different. It wasn't as tight checking as some may have thought it would have been, but the goal totals were far lower than what occurred in the Oilers series.

The Golden Knights' star forwards, Mark Stone and Jack Eichel, started the series very poorly. They were neutralized by Joel Eriksson-Ek, Brock Faber and Jonas Brodin, but as the series went along, they found their game.

In the final two games of the series, Eichel recorded a goal and three assists, and Stone added his own two goals and three points. 

The Golden Knights and Oilers have met in the playoffs before, with the Golden Knights defeating the Oilers in six games in the second round of the 2022-23 playoffs, going on to win the Stanley Cup. The teams traded wins in the first four games before the Golden Knights took over in Games 5 and 6, closing out the series. 

The series was headlined by the phenomenal play of Eichel. Although it's seemingly impossible to stop McDavid, Eichel did his best to make him work for every goal while matching his output. If the Golden Knights have any hope of doing so again, they'll need Eichel to play at the level he displayed in Games 5 and 6.

The Golden Knights and Oilers met four times this season, splitting the season series. The Golden Knights were victorious in the first two meetings, but the Oilers defeated the Golden Knights in the following two. 

The series will be fierce, as the two teams have built a bit of a rivalry with one another. The Oilers have suffered this season from their lack of depth, something the Golden Knights have an abundance of and will need to exploit to prevail.  

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