Four Oilers who need to step up in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final

Additionally, he was handed another stick infraction and a 10-minute misconduct in the third period with the game already out of reach, finishing Game 3 with a -2 rating. In his post-game interview, he mentioned:

“I think the game obviously got out of hand at the end, that stuff is going to happen,” He added, “You look at some of the calls that were obviously frustrating. They seem to get away with it more than we do. It’s tough to find the line, they’re doing just as much stuff as we are. It’s 4-4 (penalties) at the end of it (first) and then it gets out of hand. They seemed to be paying a little more attention to our group.”

The extracurricular activities after the whistle are fun to watch, but the refs seem trigger-happy and will be keeping a close eye on Kane — especially when it comes to his stick. When he loses his composure, it ultimately plays right into players like Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett’s game plan. So, Kane must find the balance between maintaining his intensity and staying composed — it might not be as exciting to watch, but it gives the Oilers a better chance to win hockey games.

Darnell Nurse

Darnell Nurse and John Klingberg were paired together in Game 3, but they didn’t seem to have much chemistry as a duo on the Oilers’ back end.

The pairing was on the ice for the first goal against, on a play where they, along with centerman Leon Draisaitl, seemed confused about who was supposed to cover whom before Marchand eventually scored. Overall, they played 5:33 together at 5v5 but seemed out of sync, with scoring chances favouring Florida 4-1 while that pairing was on the ice.

Individually, Nurse had some ups and downs in Game 3 on the defensive side of the game. He fumbled the puck at times, and I tracked a giveaway from him in the second period that led to a dangerous scoring chance for Florida in front.

However, his biggest moment of the night came in the third period when he picked Jonah Gadjovic out of the scrum, and both exchanged punches, landed some bombs, got bloodied, and smiled after the bout. The fight was entertaining, and you’ve got to respect Nurse’s willingness to go to battle for his teammates, but the bottom line is, that the Oilers didn’t come away with the win.

That said, hopefully, that scrap with Gadjovic sparks something in Nurse’s game. Putting up more points would be nice — he’s gone pointless in the last eight games — but the team needs him to move the puck to his forwards more effectively. That could mean carrying it up the ice more, and he also needs to play a steadier defensive game.

For Game 4, I’d sit Klingberg and put Troy Stecher into the lineup to play with Nurse because, for whatever reason, the 5-foot-10 defenceman who brings 110% every shift also brings out the best in the Oilers’ longest-serving D-man. In over 74 minutes played together this postseason, they have a 2-0 goal differential and a 25-21 edge in scoring chances.

Stuart Skinner

Stuart Skinner allowed five goals in Game 2 but was mostly solid, making several key saves late in the game. However, in Game 3, he also gave up five goals but played differently — shaky, if you will — and was pulled in the third period. Calvin Pickard came in relief, marking his first time playing since Game 2 of the second round against the Vegas Golden Knights.

Skinner made 18 of 23 saves in Game 3, posting a 0.783 save percentage. Yet, he didn’t look like the focused and steady netminder we’ve seen recently; as Frank Seravalli described his play, “He was swimming out of the crease on multiple goals.”

Additionally, former Oilers goaltender Devan Dubnyk provided analysis on Oilersnation After Dark, offering a netminder’s perspective. He broke down what he saw from Skinner on the first goal against and noted that Skinner didn’t look like the steady version we’ve seen lately, saying:

“You can tell from the first goal that he wasn’t the same as he has been, the lack of patience on that first goal, that frantic scrambling, just the running around. To begin with, the puck comes out, it’s lucky it goes to the other side, but in the games before when he’s looked good, he’s been in control, so that push over to his blocker, he’s going to get to his post and stay in control.”

That said, head coach Kris Knoblauch says the Oilers will decide closer to Game 4 who will start in net — either Skinner or Pickard — but he doesn’t place the blame for Game 3’s loss solely on Skinner, calling it a team-wide breakdown.

With Pickard, you know what you’re getting — he generally makes the saves he should. With Skinner, it’s more of a wild card, but when he’s on his game, his ceiling is higher than that of his crease partner. In saying that, my gut says go with Pickard in net next game, but I feel they have to go with Skinner in net because you can’t argue with his previous Game 4 numbers.

While Florida is home to pop star Pitbull, aka “Mr. Worldwide,” Edmonton counters with Skinner, “Mr. Game 4,” who has a perfect 6-0 record in his last six Game 4s, posting a 1.26 goals-against-average, a 0.955 save percentage and two shutouts.

Much like Stecher brings out the best in Nurse, it’s hard to explain why Skinner always plays lights out in Game 4s. He’s shown time and again that he can bounce back after a rough outing, and if he’s given the net next game, the Oilers need him to rise to the occasion once again to even the series.