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A shocking finish to Game 3 saw the Vegas Golden Knights keep themselves in the series with a buzzer-beating 4-3 victory on the road. Now, two nights later, the Edmonton Oilers were hoping to shake off the unfortunate ending to take a stranglehold of this Round 2 series. Game 4 took place Monday night (May 12) at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta. The Oilers won this one by a score of 3-0. Here’s your game recap.
Game Recap
The Oilers started this one off quickly as Connor Brown feathered one out front and Adam Henrique buried it just 1:27 into the game. Edmonton seemed to control the game for the most part to start, and they were really trying to get up in the grill of Vegas goaltender Adin Hill. The Golden Knights quickly got tired of it, resulting in some pushing and a big-time tilt between Nic Hague and Trent Frederic. The Oilers picked up the extra penalty in the melee, however, they were able to kill it off.
Edmonton batted another one home a bit later on, once again off the stick of Henrique. This was his second of the game, and immediately after it went in, another massive scrum ensued due to Evander Kane bulling over Hill. Vegas got another power play out of it, but they could not convert. The Golden Knights got one more opportunity late in the frame, but did not even register a shot. An absolutely chaotic first period finished with the Oilers up 2-0, as well as ahead on the shot clock, 15-5.
The second period was a much tamer one than the first. Play remained uneventful until shortly before the halfway point of the game when Kane ripped one past Hill off the rush to extend the Edmonton lead further. Other than that, the middle frame was a quiet one. Pavel Dorofeyev took a tripping penalty that led to nothing, and the Oilers preserved their lead heading into the third. The lead was 3-0, with the shots still heavily in their favour at 25-12.
The final period did not amount to much. The Golden Knights grew more desperate as the period went on, but Stuart Skinner and the Oilers defence stood tall and thwarted any bid at a late comeback. Vegas pulled their goalie with just inside five minutes to play, however, they could only muster a couple shots with the extra man out there. Big saves and bigger hits proved to be the difference in this one. The final score was 3-0 for Edmonton, with the shots at 32-24 for them as well.
A few players had standout performances in this one, all for the Oilers. Henrique potted the first two goals of the game, and Kane had a goal and an assist. Skinner stopped all 24 shots he faced as well for his second career playoff shutout.
Game 5 of this series will be Wednesday night (May 14) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Puck drop for that one is 7:30 p.m. MDT. The Oilers will look to finish it off on the road and advance to the Western Conference Final for the second year in a row, while the Golden Knights will look to force Game 6.
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Chicago Blackhawks’ rookie hid plans to stay away from team before draft: Report
Anton Frondell threw the Chicago Blackhawks a curveball after they selected him with the No. 3 pick in June’s draft. Per Scott Powers of The Athletic, Chicago learned about Frondell’s plan to return to the SHL after they drafted him. “The Blackhawks learned more about Frondell’s plan after drafting him. Originally, they hadn’t ruled out his coming to training camp and seeing how he stacked up against NHL competition in preseason games,” Powers wrote. “But as the Blackhawks negotiated Frondell’s entry-level contract and discussed what he sought for the upcoming season, he expressed his desire to return to Djurgården for another year.” Anton Frondell declined an invitation to Chicago Blackhawks camp Chicago offered Frondell an invite to training camp, but the forward declined. The decision is at odds with what he told reporters following his selection on draft night. “If I get the chance to take a spot on the team, I will do everything I can to do that, to play,” Frondell said on June 27. “And if I’m not good enough, if I don’t make it, I’m going back to Djurgårdens.” Per Powers, the decision for Frondell to return to Djurgarden was made last fall. “Actually, we already talked about it in October, November (of 2024) that it doesn’t matter if we’re going to play SHL or HockeyAllsvenskan, in the second league in Sweden,” said Djurgarden general manager Niklas Wikegård. “So it would be good for him to play at least one more year in Sweden and just mature physically as a player. “So we had a mutual agreement with the agents and him and his father that he’s gonna stay for one more year in Sweden and play.” The Blackhawks are okay with the plan The Blackhawks are “understanding” of the plan, as the SHL is superior to the play Frondell would see if he played on the Rockford IceHogs. Still, there was a possibility that Chicago would give Frondell a spot on the Blackhawks after training camp, allowing him to build chemistry with young players like Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar as their young core develops. That won’t happen until at least next year. One wonders why Frondell wasn’t honest with the Blackhawks before the draft. It’s a curious way to start a relationship.
Celtics' moves suggest new guard will be traded — eventually
The Boston Celtics got under the second luxury-tax apron by trading Georges Niang to the Utah Jazz Tuesday. The move also gives them a huge incentive to deal their most expensive new player. The Celtics have dramatically reduced their payroll in the wake of Jayson Tatum's Achilles injury. With their superstar unlikely to play in 2025-26, the Celtics traded away starters Jrue Holiday ($94.4M for three years, plus a $37.2M player option in 2027-28) and Kristaps Porzingis ($30.7M next season). They also let Luke Kornet ($2.8M) leave as a free agent, and Al Horford ($9.5M) is almost certainly gone as well. They received Georges Niang ($8.2M) in the Porzingis deal, but traded him Tuesday for undrafted R.J. Luis Jr., a rookie on a two-way deal. That effectively takes Niang's full salary of their books and gets them under the second luxury-tax apron, freeing them from the penalties and restrictions that go along with second-apron status. According to cap expert Yossi Gozlan, the Celtics have saved a whopping $286M in salary and taxes with their moves. Still, the team can reap a larger long-term reward by dropping below the luxury tax entirely, which requires reducing their payroll by just over $12M more. The Celtics don't seem inclined to trade Jaylen Brown, Derrick White or Payton Pritchard, wanting to keep some core members of their 2024 title team together for Tatum's return. Sam Hauser is on an affordable four-year, $45M deal, but losing his $10M salary wouldn't get them under the tax line. That's why Anfernee Simons, acquired in the Holiday trade, is likely not long for Boston. The 26-year-old guard makes $27.7M in the last year of his contract, making him the perfect trade piece to get Boston under the luxury tax. Not only would getting under the tax line free the Celtics of their tax obligations and save them as much as $40M, but it would make them eligible to share in the money from tax-paying teams. The Celtics would also be able to avoid the dreaded repeater tax penalties, which make every dollar over the luxury-tax number progressively more expensive every year a team stays over the tax line. This doesn't mean Simons is going to be traded this summer. Boston has until the Feb. 5 trade deadline to move Simons, since luxury tax is calculated on the team's total payroll the last day of the season. But given the massive savings they'd get back from losing Simons' salary, it seems inevitable. The Celtics have lost a lot of talent this summer, but they've saved a tremendous amount of money in the process. They might have to attach draft capital to get off Simons' deal, but if he plays well in Boston, he might even bring back something in a trade next season. Tatum's injury threw a huge wrench in the Celtics' plans. If they can use this season to get under the luxury tax, they'll have the flexibility to reload and contend again when their star is back in a year.
Shedeur Sanders getting golden opportunity, but ultimate pressure as the starter
The Cleveland Browns are giving Shedeur Sanders an incredible opportunity just weeks after he was throwing passes to the equipment staff as the No. 4 quarterback. Despite being QB4 on the depth chart released this week, Sanders was named the starting quarterback for the Browns' preseason opener on the road against the Carolina Panthers, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. "Sanders, the Browns fourth-team quarterback who has yet to take a snap with the first-team offense, is expected to start the game, a league source tells cleveland.com," Cabot wrote. "He’ll get the nod because Kenny Pickett and Dillon Gabriel are both nursing hamstring injuries, and the Browns don’t want Joe Flacco, 40, playing in the preseason opener." With the addition of Tyler Huntley on Monday, Cleveland now has six quarterbacks on the preseason roster, as Deshaun Watson sits on the physically unable to perform list. Sanders has wanted an opportunity to prove to the Browns that he can be a full-time starter in the league after an embarrassing spring. The projected first-round pick fell to Cleveland in the fifth round, two rounds after the team chose Dillon Gabriel from Oregon. The Browns are now giving Sanders a chance to show the coaching staff what he can do as the starter on Friday. The Colorado Buffaloes product will face the ultimate pressure to play well against Carolina, or he may not receive another golden opportunity with the first team on a roster that has a CVS receipt full of quarterbacks. Sanders faces an uphill battle to perform well after receiving a lack of reps during OTAs and the beginning of training camp. But Sanders knew he wasn't going to have an easy path to move up the depth chart. Friday is Sanders' best shot.
Giants' first depth chart contains surprise at quarterback
The New York Giants had a surprise on their quarterback depth chart on Tuesday morning. Veteran quarterback Russell Wilson entered training camp as the clear favorite to win the starting job before New York's Week 1 contest against the Washington Commanders. Per the depth chart released by the Giants on Tuesday, Wilson is indeed QB1. Behind Wilson is veteran quarterback Jameis Winston, and rookie Jaxson Dart sits at QB3. Tommy DeVito is QB4. Dan Duggan of The Athletic thought Winston being listed as QB2 was a surprise, as Dart has taken the bulk of second-team reps early in training camp. The Giants could be giving Dart extra reps in practice to help his development before the preseason. Dart, whom the Giants traded back into the first round to grab, is expected to be a long-term solution for New York in the future. However, the Ole Miss standout might not be ready to play in 2025, at least to begin the season. Winston probably gives the Giants the best opportunity to win games if Wilson has to miss time due to injury, as he did last year. Also, it's worth mentioning that keeping Winston at QB2 doesn't hurt his value if the front office tries to trade him before the regular season.
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