Kings’ Coach Jim Hiller Single-Handedly Blowing Series Versus the Oilers

After Game 4, which the Oilers won in overtime by a 4-3 final, Hiller did not have the cool, calm demeanour one would expect from a head coach when speaking with reporters. Instead of seeming relaxed and confident in his group, he showed his true frustration and even nervousness.

“How do I change it?” Hiller responded when asked how he gets his team to improve their play in the third period. “Next question, geez. We were that far [from scoring] on the empty net, [if Quinton Byfield] chips that one out, we’re not even talking about this. How about that? That’s your favourite question too, by the way. Maybe you’ve got some ideas for me.”

While coaches do sometimes blow their gaskets when speaking with reporters, the question Hiller was asked in this specific instance seemed quite fair. Instead of giving a response that would have shown his players he remained confident, he instead gave off some nervous and irritated energy.

Shortened Bench Has Tired Kings

Heading into this series, fans who were taking the Kings over the Oilers were largely doing so because they felt the California-based club had better depth. While that may be the case, fans haven’t gotten a real opportunity to judge it, as Hiller has stapled his fourth line to the bench all series long, as well as his third-pairing defensemen.

Hiller has relied extremely heavily on his top-four defensemen in this series. Drew Doughty, Mikey Anderson, Joel Edmundson, and Vladislav Gavrikov have all averaged more than 20 minutes in ice time through the opening five games. Brandt Clarke, meanwhile, has averaged just 12:24, while Jordan Spence, who has appeared in four games, is averaging just 6:41. Jacob Moverare, who has dressed in two games, has averaged just 2:31.

Going to this type of approach so early into the playoffs is quite baffling for Hiller, as it puts some serious miles on the top two pairings. We may already be seeing that, as this Kings team appeared to be running on fumes in a Game 5 that saw them dominated from start to finish.

Hiller is doing the exact same thing with his bottom forward line. Alex Turcotte, Jeff Malott, Trevor Lewis, and Samuel Helenius have all averaged less than five minutes per game in ice time. The next lowest forward is Andrei Kuzmenko, who is averaging 18:32. The heavy minutes given to their top-nine forwards and top-four defencemen is certainly something the Oilers are cognisant of.

“They’re relying heavily on four [defensemen] and nine forwards, and that’s tough,” Connor McDavid said following Game 4. “Not to say that we’re not playing big minutes too, but I thought we just wore them down. They like to absorb pressure, and that can be taxing at times. I thought you saw that tonight, just kind of wear them down through the second half of that game.”

Hiller’s Job Could Be in Jeopardy

As crazy as it may seem, the mistakes by Hiller to this point in the series could wind up costing him his job. There is always plenty of turnover in the NHL in regards to head coaches, and there happen to be plenty of great ones available right now. Should the Kings fall to the Oilers, he could very well wind up being the next coaching casualty.