3 Keys to Oilers Defeating Stars in Game 3

The Edmonton Oilers will look to take a 2-1 lead in the 2025 Western Conference Final when they host the Dallas Stars for Game 3 of the best-of-seven Stanley Cup Playoffs series at Rogers Place on Sunday, May 25.

After losing Game 1 by a score of 6-3, Edmonton regrouped to defeat Dallas by a score of 3-0 in Game 2 at American Airlines Center on Friday (May 23) with a textbook postseason performance.

Edmonton’s victory serves as the template for defeating Dallas on the road. Now, can the Oilers replicate that at home? Here are 3 keys to winning Game 3.

Oilers Must Keep Things Under Control

What a difference there is now from the start of the playoffs, when the Round 1 series between Edmonton and the Los Angeles Kings can pretty much be summed up in three words: “last goal wins.”

Despite allowing 24 goals, the most they’ve surrendered in a single postseason series since 1989, the Oilers still managed to outscore Los Angeles, with 27 goals of their own, to eliminate the Kings in six games.

That series was a blast to watch, but the style of play wasn’t conducive to a lengthy playoff run. If Edmonton was going to get back to the Stanley Cup Final, they would need to shore things up significantly, and they’ve done just that.

Edmonton has been much better defensively as a team, thanks to the efforts of both its blueliners and forwards. Playing structurally sound hockey with smarts and discipline, the Oilers have cut down on their errors and limited the opposition’s power-play opportunities.

As a result, the Oilers’ last three wins have all been shutouts: they defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 3-0 and 1-0 in Games 4 and 5, respectively, of Round 2, before blanking Dallas on Friday. Goaltender Stuart Skinner has shown he can backstop Edmonton to victory when he doesn’t get hung out to dry by his teammates. Over the last four games, he’s allowed just five goals – four of which came in the third period of Game 1 against Dallas, when the Oilers had a brief meltdown that harkened their play at the start of Round 1.

A game that ends with a score of 3-0 might not be as exciting as one that ends with a score of 6-5. But if the former is a win and the latter is a loss, Oilers fans will happily embrace low-scoring affairs.

Oilers Can Make Themselves at Home

The atmosphere inside the arena during Stanley Cup Playoff games in Edmonton is the stuff of legend. But home ice hasn’t always proved advantageous to the Oilers over the years.

Going into the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Oilers had a home record above .500 in only one of their previous 12 postseason appearances and were just 11-13 as the home team in the playoffs during the Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid era.