In Los Angeles, this one was over early. The Edmonton Oilers scored three times in the first period tot take control of Game 3 on Friday night, and downed the Kings, 6-1, for a 2-1 lead in the opening round series of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. 
Hyman opened the scoring with his first of the night, at 6:42 of the first period, scoring a rebound of his initial shot, to give the Oilers a 1-0 lead.
“Obviously, Zach is always around the net and he’s always going to be there to bang those in,” Edmonton’s Connor McDavid said. He gets us going on a big goal on a great play from [Mattias Ekholm]. It’s a big one, getting the first one on the road in their building, it’s big.”
Draisaitl potted his first at 15:36, scoring from the bottom of the left circle for a 2-0 lead.
McDavid scored off the power play at 18:35 for a 3-0 advantage headed to the middle frame.
“From the beginning, it feels like we were not there,” the Kings’ Kevin Fiala said. “I think they were more hungry. They had more chances. And so, we just have to be ready the next game.”
Stuart Skinner made 27 saves in the win.
“I thought it was a good win,” McDavid said. “I thought we did a lot of good things. Obviously special teams was great. I thought ‘Stu’ was a rock back there. Penalty kill did its thing, and 5-on-5, we were solid, I thought, so a lot of positives. But it just counts as one win, that’s all. Got to be ready for a big one Sunday.”
Game 4 is set for LA on Sunday.
Drew Doughty was the lone striker for the Kings, his goal at 5:32 of the middle frame cut the deficit to 3-1, but that was close as the Kings would get to seeing the Oilers again.
Evander Kane replied with a goal at 7:39, scoring off a tip-in for a 4-1 advantage after 40 minutes of play.
“Those are those momentum shifts that everyone talks about all the time,” Draisaitl said. “Those are big, especially in away buildings in the playoffs, so it was a big goal by ‘Kaner.’”
Hyman collected his double at 6:37 of the third period for a 5-1 score. He hit off a two-skater power play with a tip in.
“He’s always willing to go there and pay a price, and he’s done that so far this playoffs,” McDavid said of Hyman, who has scored six goals in the series.
Draisaitl corralled his double at 12:38 of the third with another two-skater power play strike for the 6-52 final count on the scoreboard.
“I thought after we gave up one, we got back to our game and [had] a solid effort,” Draisaitl said.
Cam Talbot made 34 saves in the loss.
“I mean, I think our effort was there,” LA’s Matt Roy said. “I don’t think it was a lack of that. Obviously, the game didn’t go the way we wanted to, but it’s 2-1 in the series. Could have lost 10-1, it doesn’t matter. It’s 2-1, and we’re just going to bounce back and get ready to go.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.