In certain areas of the game, the Edmonton Oilers have put on a dominant display throughout the playoffs. Perhaps none as impressive as killing 25 consecutive penalties. Currently, the Oilers are sitting with a 100% penalty kill in the Western Conference Final and a 93.5% penalty kill overall. Led by names like Mattias Ekholm, Vincent Desharnais, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and many others, the penalty kill has the chance to break their franchise record.
Many benefits come from being so strong in this one aspect of the game, most notably zero goals against. What other impacts come from an impenetrable penalty kill?
The Oilers’ Success Rate on the PK Is Elite
During Round 1, the Oilers took 12 penalties against the Los Angeles Kings, and all of them were successfully killed. Against the Vancouver Canucks, they took another 23 penalties, 20 of which were killed successfully. Remarkably, only three powerplay goals have been scored against the Oilers in 17 games. This Oilers penalty kill is arguably some of the best defensive hockey to come out of Edmonton.
With 25 consecutive penalty kills the Oilers have tied the franchise record and look to chase down the NHL record of 34 consecutive kills set by the St. Louis Blues.
Unfathomably, the Oilers have scored more goals on the Dallas powerplay than Dallas has scored when they are up a man. Mattias Janmark netted his second of the playoffs shorthanded in Wednesday’s game four. Janmark’s shorthanded goal is one of only three special teams goals scored in the Western Conference Finals.
The Oilers Use Penalty Kill as a Momentum Switch
Throughout the playoffs, emotions run abnormally high. As a result, teams are likely to take penalties. The Oilers possess an ability to not only bail out teammates for their mistakes but also gain momentum after a penalty kill. Vital penalty killers within Ryan McLeod and Connor Brown play as if they will die if they don’t win that board battle; they sacrifice parts of themselves to get the kill. From those players giving everything they got, the energy created is palpable for the rest of the roster. They run with the energy created and use it to their advantage.
Being able to gain control of the game after a penalty kill is a huge asset in a series where momentum is everything. Two games in a row, a 2-0 lead was blown due to a drastic momentum switch. For the Oilers to have such a dominant penalty kill coupled with the ability to switch momentum adds another layer of complexity to this Oilers team. The Oilers look to continue their dominant penalty kill and punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Finals.
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