Oilers Sorely Miss Top Defenseman

The Edmonton Oilers trail the Los Angeles Kings 0-2 in their first-round matchup. It's a hole few predicted the Oilers to be in. Led by two of the greatest living hockey players in the world, the defending Western Conference champions were expected to cruise past their division rivals.

What no one discussed enough was the impact of Mattias Ekholm's absence on the Oilers. Edmonton's series chances are plummeting without their top defenseman.

Game 2 exposed a huge flaw in the Oilers' defense. With Ekholm out of the lineup, the team is deploying a top defensive pairing of Darnell Nurse and Evan Bouchard. The results have been discouraging so far. Despite posting solid expected goals for and against numbers, according to MoneyPuck's data, they struggled mightily in their own end.

It was highlighted by a beautiful goal scored by burgeoning superstar Quinton Byfield. As he sent the puck in behind the Oilers' net, it whipped along the boards. Players from both sides converged on the loose puck, and Nurse had a chance to dig into the pile. Instead, he floats by the play expecting it to be sent further up the wall.

That doesn't happen, and Byfield comes away with the puck and 30 feet of wide-open ice. Bouchard doesn't close the gap either, and it allows Byfield a clear lane to the net front, and he roofs a backhand shot behind Stuart Skinner. It was a highlight-reel goal from the 22-year-old forward, but it was also a defensive lapse that the Oilers cannot allow to continue.