The Los Angeles Kings defeated the Edmonton Oilers 4-3 on Saturday when Quinton Byfield scored his second goal of the game with 1:41 left in overtime.
Los Angeles defeated Edmonton, which had eliminated the Kings from the playoffs for three consecutive seasons, in the opening of four regular-season games after Byfield scored on a wrist shot from the right circle.
Tanner Jeannot scored, Warren Foegele had two assists, and the Kings won their sixth consecutive home game. Darcy Kuemper stopped twenty-four times.
The Oilers’ three-game winning streak was ended, and they also had goals from Viktor Arvidsson, Kasperi Kapanen, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins on the power play. 24 saves were made by Stuart Skinner.
In order to match the physicality the Oilers displayed in their five-game first-round loss the previous season, the Kings retooled in the winter, adding Foegele and Jeannot. They combined for seven points and a plus-7 rating while playing on a line with Byfield, which benefited Los Angeles.
Takeaways
Oilers: Edmonton fell to 16-2-3 after leading after two periods, surrendering points for just the sixth time in 21 games.
Kings: One of LA’s most obvious weaknesses in their postseason losses to the Oilers has been the penalty kill. They only offered Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, and company two opportunities during the match.
Key moment
In overtime, Los Angeles gained possession for the first time after Jeannot overpowered Evan Bouchard near the wall, taking the puck away from him and making McDavid and Draisaitl play defense.
Key stat
Both Draisaitl and McDavid have streaks of ten points or more. In NHL history, McDavid has scored points in at least 10 games 16 times, second only to Wayne Gretzky’s 31-game stretch.
Up next
The Oilers will return to action on Sunday when they travel to Anaheim, while the Kings will host Philadelphia.
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