Stanley Cup Playoffs Day 34: McDavid and Oilers take Game 1 in double OT thriller

It wasn’t until 58 seconds into the second period when we got our first goal of the game and the series, as a scramble behind the net saw the puck float out towards the point, which Brett Kulak pounced on and tried to get it on net. However, the shot was blocked by Esa Lindell, which then resulted in the puck bouncing over to Leon Draisaitl, who buried it with ease to make it 1-0 Oilers.

And only a few minutes later, Connor McDavid‘s pass on the rush was blocked, but Zach Hyman was relentless and found a way to get the puck in the net to make it 2-0 Edmonton.

Things appeared to be going well for Edmonton, but the Stars were far from out of this game. In fact, it didn’t take long for them to get back in it. Only a couple minutes after Hyman’s goal, they got a fortunate bounce from a fanned pass from Kulak, which Jamie Benn took advantage of and attempted to deke out Skinner. He was stopped, but Tyler Seguin was there to bury the loose puck and make it a one-goal game.

The Oilers did a good job of slowing down the Stars, even outshooting them in both the second and third periods in an attempt to close out the game with the 2-1 lead. Unfortunately, it didn’t even last to the point where Dallas needed to pull their goalie, as with 3:23 remaining in the game, Evgenii Dadonov threw the puck towards the net, and Seguin found himself in the right spot at the right time for an easy tap-in to get his second of the game, and we were tied and going to overtime.

Overtime to got off to a hectic start, as McDavid got a high-sticking double minor only 17 seconds in. However, the Oilers penalty killers came up clutch and kept the puck out of the net – even if they needed the post a couple of times to do so.

Later in the period, it looked like the Oilers got their big chance to end this game, as Hyman’s attempt to throw the puck on net set up a wide-open McDavid in front. After waiting out Jake Oettinger and seemingly having a gaping net to bury the puck, it looked like game over, but Oettinger made a desperate play with his stick to stop it.

But that wouldn’t be McDavid’s only chance. As the game shifted to double overtime, it only took 32 seconds for Evan Bouchard set up the Oilers captain perfectly in the slot, and McDavid made no mistake this time to bury his chance and end the game.

The Oilers win Game 1 by a score of 3-2 in double overtime, and they take a 1-0 series lead. Seguin’s two goal game would go to vain for Dallas, while Skinner had a surprisingly sturdy performance by stopping 31 of 33 shots, and allowed two goals you couldn’t exactly blame him for either.