The Edmonton Oilers bounced back from an early two-goal deficit to win 5-2 and even up the best-of-7 series 2-2.
After letting in two goals in the first five minutes, Stuart Skinner locked it down and finished the game with 20 saves. His counterpart, Jake Oettinger, had one of his shakier games of the post-season, allowing four goals on 28 shots.
Wyatt Johnston netted home his ninth of the spring just 58 seconds into the contest, with Esa Lindell adding to the lead just four and a half minutes later.
Skinner made a key save on Tyler Seguin shortly after, allowing his team to tie the game before the period was over, and eventually leave Edmonton with the much-needed victory.
Resilience, Depth Come to Life for the Oilers
The Oilers have developed the unwanted habit of disappearing for long stretches in this series. In the two games before Wednesday, they were shot-less for more than ten minutes three separate times.
In games 1 and 3 the Oilers had a 2-0 lead. In both, they choked those leads away, losing one and winning one. On this night they were the squad in the early hole and it looked like a loss before the anthem singer finished his last note.
In the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and especially in this series, the depth of the Edmonton Oilers has been relatively nonexistent. If the big boys don’t score, the Oilers don’t win. That is what the past has told us, and that is what the spring has told us.
On this night, all of that was flipped on its head, and not a moment too late.
McDavid, Draisaitl, and Hyman combined for 5 points. There was nothing new there. However, after being down 2-0 early, Ryan McLeod was the one to start the comeback. Mcleod scored 12 goals in the regular season but this was his first in the playoffs.
Bouchard completed the comeback less than three minutes later, and just like that, the score was tied.
The depth of the Oilers continued to do their part as Mattias Janmark scored a short-handed goal in the second period. Draisaitl was the lone “big boy” to score, as he gave the Oilers a 4-2 lead a minute later.
Media Scapegoats Redeemed in Edmonton
In a high-pressure market like Edmonton, the media turns on players rather quickly. Stuart Skinner, Corey Perry, Connor Brown, and Darnell Nurse have all been feeling the wrath of the media and the fanbase.
Stuart Skinner’s troubles on the ice are well known. After letting in two goals early, you could feel another tough night coming, but he held his ground and shut the Stars out for the rest of the game.
Corey Perry has been a healthy scratch for this series. Coach Knoblauch needed a change and a spark and added Perry in the lineup for Game 4. He finished the game with one point, a +1, and three hits.
The frustration towards Connor Brown and Darnell Nurse has been boiling over all season.
Connor Brown had 4 goals and 12 points the entire regular season. Well, after getting his first goal of the playoffs earlier in the series, he made a key pass to Janmark on the go-ahead goal, and his hard skating drew a penalty later in the game.
In sports, the reaction to your poor play is heightened or lessened depending on your salary. That’s just the way it is. In the NHL, $9.5 million is a lot of money, and Nurse has been crucified for it.
Heading into Wednesday night he had a playoff worse -12 plus/minus, and the media in Edmonton has been reminding everyone every day. After the morning skate, he gave a very brief media appearance, where it was apparent the frustration was mutual.
The second goal against the Oilers deflected off of Nurse’s backside, and it had all the making of another tough night. It turned out the exact opposite, finishing with a point and 12 hits.
Missed Opportunity for Dallas
The Dallas Stars are a very good team, and there should be very little concern for them after Game 4. That being said, Wednesday night’s loss was a massively missed opportunity to really put their foot down on the Oilers, especially with how the game started.
Looking back, they got a split on the road, and Oettinger was due for a letdown performance. But, that doesn’t change the fact that Friday’s game could have been for a chance to go to the Stanley Cup Final.
Now, they head back to Dallas for a best-of-3.
Chris Tanev suffered an injury after a blocked shot. They are hopefully he will be good to go for Game 5.
As for the rest of the team, blowing a decent lead is nothing new. They did it twice against Colorado in Round 2. They’ve been here before, and they have the edge in almost every department over the Oilers, including depth and goaltending.
What they don’t have, is Connor McDavid. If the depth of the Oilers continues to show life, this series could come down to the last shot.
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About The Author
Marc Sautter is a self-proclaimed sports addict, with the NHL being his specialty. After being a sports fan from afar, Marc made a career change in his 30s to cover sports through journalism and podcasting. His daily NHL preview and betting show “Pucks Across Borders” airs every weekday morning. In addition to hockey, you can read his work on the Canadian Football League all summer on Total Apex Sports.
