In an important Game 4 Western Conference Final matchup, the Edmonton Oilers showed their resilience and depth in a 5-2 victory over the Dallas Stars, tying the series at 2-2. With several lineup changes coming into the game and with sights pointed at Darnell Nurse‘s recent struggles, the Oilers rallied after going down early and put up a solid 50 minutes of hockey to get the win. Connor McDavid praised the team’s performance, stating, “I thought everyone played really well, honestly.”
The Oilers’ win came despite an early 2-0 deficit just five minutes into the game. The comeback was ignited by a depth goal from Ryan McLeod (his first of the playoffs) and a rebound marker from Evan Bouchard. A short-handed goal from Mattias Janmark followed off a great assist from Connor Brown. Brown commented on the play, saying, “I saw the defender shading over to me, and I fed him a bit of a sh– burger (pass), but he handled it and made a great play.”
Leon Draisaitl put the game away with a nice goal and Mattias Ekholm also found the back of the net with an empty-netter. McDavid himself was instrumental, notching three assists.
Oilers’ Penalty Kill Stays Strong
Defensively, Edmonton’s penalty kill continued its exceptional form, successfully stopping all of Dallas’ power plays, making it 9/9 in the series and 23 consecutive penalties killed. Darnell Nurse took a lot of heat coming into the game but stood out with a game-high 12 hits and played a crucial role in generating the Oilers’ first goal. Both McDavid and Brown highlighted Nurse’s physicality, noting that they thought he responded well to the criticism (some of it unwarranted) and have perhaps his best game of the postseason. Brown said, “Everyone and their dog coming at him this morning” and noted what type of character person Nurse is to play the way he did in the face of all the noise.
Related: McDavid Defends Darnell Nurse Amidst Playoff Criticism
The rest of the Oilers’ defense contributed five hits, with Philip Broberg delivering a solid performance in his 11th career playoff game (first of this season), logging a career-high 14:21 minutes of ice time.
Oilers Rallied to Earn Big Game 4 Win After Stars Hot Start
Dallas got early goals, one off a great shot and another of Nurse’s backside. Once Edmonton settled in, the Stars struggled to match Edmonton’s intensity. For the Stars, with their blueline totaled only four hits. Adding to their woes, Stars coach Pete DeBoer revealed that Chris Tanev blocked a shot and was unable to finish the game, expressing hope for his return in the next matchup. It’s not clear at this point if he’ll be in for Game 5.
With the series now tied and reduced to a best-of-three, both teams will be eager to gain the upper hand as they head back to Dallas on Friday.
Next: Oilers Sticking With Skinner for Game 4 The Right Call
