{"id":467573,"date":"2025-04-26T07:49:49","date_gmt":"2025-04-26T11:49:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=467573"},"modified":"2025-04-26T07:49:49","modified_gmt":"2025-04-26T11:49:49","slug":"special-teams-taking-centre-stage-in-kings-vs-oilers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2025\/04\/26\/special-teams-taking-centre-stage-in-kings-vs-oilers\/","title":{"rendered":"Special Teams Taking Centre Stage in Kings vs Oilers"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"242\" data-end=\"316\">Extra, extra, read all about it, we have an important Kings vs Oilers series update. That being that the special teams and depth scoring have powered the Los Angeles Kings to a 2\u20131 series lead over the Ednonton Oilers.<\/p>\n<h2 data-start=\"242\" data-end=\"316\">Kings vs Oilers and the Mid-Series Recap Highlighting Special Teams and Depth<\/h2>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"318\" data-end=\"693\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2025\/04\/21\/oilers-vs-kings-2025-stanley-cup-playoffs-western-conference-first-round-series-preview\/\" target=\"_self\">Kings vs Oilers<\/a> playoff series has been packed with drama so far, with the Los Angeles Kings holding a 2\u20131 advantage. After securing two home victories, the Kings fell in <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/gamecenter\/edm-vs-lak\/2025\/04\/25\/2024030183\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Game 3<\/a> as the Oilers mounted a stunning third-period comeback to win 7\u20134. Despite the setback, the Kings&#8217; special teams dominance and balanced scoring have been the difference through three games.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"700\" data-end=\"753\">Kings vs Oilers and Special Teams as the Deciding Factor Thus Far<\/h3>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"755\" data-end=\"1112\">Through the first three games, the Kings&#8217; power play has been lethal, converting at an alarming rate of seven of 12 opportunities (58.3%). In <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2025\/04\/23\/nhl-predictions-playoffs-edition-edmonton-oilers-vs-los-angeles-kings-game-2\/\" target=\"_self\">Game 2<\/a>, they went 3-for-5 with the man advantage, as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/c\/clarkbr02.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Brandt Clarke<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/k\/kuzmean01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Andrei Kuzmenko<\/a> both struck on the power play to fuel a 6\u20132 win. Even in the Game 3 loss, the Kings managed two power play goals from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/f\/fialake01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kevin Fiala<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/d\/doughdr01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Drew Doughty<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"1114\" data-end=\"1348\">Conversely, the Oilers&#8217; vaunted power play struggled early, going 0-for-5 through the first two games. They finally broke through in Game 3 when <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/b\/bouchev01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Evan Bouchard<\/a> buried a key power play goal to give Edmonton a 5\u20134 lead late in the third.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"1355\" data-end=\"1405\">Balanced Scoring Key for Kings vs Oilers Battle<\/h3>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"1407\" data-end=\"1655\">A major strength for Los Angeles has been the depth of their scoring. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/k\/kempead01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Adrian Kempe<\/a> has been outstanding, registering four goals and five assists through three games. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/k\/kopitan01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Anze Kopitar<\/a> also made a major impact in Game 2, adding a goal and three assists. Other key contributors include Anrei Kuzmenko, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/b\/byfiequ01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Quinton Byfield<\/a>, and Kevin Fiala.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"1657\" data-end=\"1851\">This spread-out offensive production has allowed the Kings to counter Edmonton\u2019s top-heavy attack. By getting goals from different lines and special teams units, they have stayed one step ahead.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-media-max-width=\"560\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Kevin Fiala ties the game with the Kings&#8217; SIXTH power-play goal of the series \ud83e\udd2f\ud83d\udea8 <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/yGdCnTTxKX\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/yGdCnTTxKX<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GinoHard_\/status\/1915969474945261671?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">April 26, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3 data-start=\"1858\" data-end=\"1888\">Oilers Punch Back in Game 3<\/h3>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"1890\" data-end=\"2209\">Facing a critical moment, Edmonton responded with urgency. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/k\/kaneev01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Evander Kane<\/a> made a triumphant return to the lineup for Game 2. Moreover, he had missed the entire 2024-25 regular season recovering from injury. He tied Game 3 midway through the third period, and Evan Bouchard\u2019s power play blast only ten seconds later gave the Oilers their first lead of the night. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/m\/mcdavco01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Connor McDavid<\/a>, as expected, stepped up with three points, while <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/b\/brownco02.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Connor Brown<\/a> notched two goals.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-media-max-width=\"560\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">AFTER A FAILED KINGS CHALLENGE, THE OILERS SCORE ON THE ENSUING PP FOR THE LEAD \ud83d\ude35\ud83e\udd2f <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/sfAQ4Gl8aJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/sfAQ4Gl8aJ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GinoHard_\/status\/1915989643981443365?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">April 26, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"2211\" data-end=\"2358\">A major storyline was the play of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/p\/pickaca01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-04-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Calvin Pickard<\/a>, who made 24 saves in his first playoff start to help Edmonton avoid a disastrous 0\u20133 series hole. That was a huge decision after Stuart Skinner&#8217;s performance was less than ideal in the first two series games. Looks like head coach Kris Knoblauch played the right cards, at the right time.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"\" data-start=\"2365\" data-end=\"2412\">Looking Ahead to the Rest of Kings vs Oilers<\/h2>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"2414\" data-end=\"2724\">The Kings vs Oilers series now heads into a pivotal Game 4 in Edmonton. The Kings will look to regain their momentum and take a commanding 3\u20131 lead. Meanwhile, the Oilers hope to build on their Game 3 rally. As the series tightens, special teams and secondary scoring will likely decide who ultimately advances.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2414\" data-end=\"2724\">Main Photo Credit: Perry Nelson &#8211; Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Extra, extra, read all about it, we have an important Kings vs Oilers series update. That being that the special teams and depth scoring have powered the Los Angeles Kings to a 2\u20131 series lead over the Ednonton Oilers. Kings vs Oilers and the Mid-Series Recap Highlighting Special Teams and Depth The Kings vs Oilers [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5399,"featured_media":467578,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[23,4547,24,4548],"tags":[8133,2253,390,1199,139,872,7526,193,6025],"class_list":["post-467573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-oilers","category-hockey","category-kings","category-nhl","tag-2025-stanley-cup-playoffs","tag-adrian-kempe","tag-anze-kopitar","tag-calvin-pickard","tag-connor-mcdavid","tag-darcy-kuemper","tag-edmonton-oilers-analysis","tag-leon-draisaitl","tag-los-angeles-kings-analysis"],"modified_by":"Levi Pike, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467573","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5399"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=467573"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467573\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":467583,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467573\/revisions\/467583"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/467578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=467573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=467573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=467573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}