The ultimate edge that the Edmonton Oilers should hold over the Los Angeles Kings in The Stanley Cup Playoffs

The real trick at this point in the season is…can they get “good enough, fast enough” to survive their current series with the highly competitive Los Angeles Kings? We presently sit at 2-2.

I do not want to take anything at all away from the Kings. They were full value for their victories in Games One and Two. They were not at their best in Game Three. But Game Four was a long overtime with the result still pending late into the evening. This thing could still easily go either way. It is a damn close contest.

But maybe we should not be surprised at the Oilers’ slow start but their resilient response since. Here is what I mean…

Over the previous four seasons of post-season games, the Edmonton Oilers have a record of 11-20 from games one through three. A winning percentage of .355. Ugh. But…from games four thorough seven over that same time frame, they explode to an eye-popping 20-7, an impressive .741 clip. Wow. That is really something. They have been almost perrenially slow starters.

So…what are the factors responsible for that?

This season, I think we can all agree that the Kings began the series with a much healthier roster than Edmonton. And even some of the Oilers that were able to answer the bell at the start of or early in this battle were only just barely able to draw in. The rust and scar tissue were obvious. It was and still is a factor. That is not an excuse, but it is an explanation. Evander Kane went from not being able to answer the bell in Game One being an impact player today. John Klingberg’s season was thought by some to be over. Now, he is in the Top Four. Trent Frederic looks better and better. Troy Stecher may be just a game away from returning. And news earlier this week that Mattias Ekholm has been responded well to treatment and may return next series. if there is a next series, that is.

But is injuries and recovery the only reason? No, I do not think so.

On paper, when both clubs are 100% healthy, the Oilers are the more skilled team of the two. That is in no way disrespectful. You do not win the Pacific division unless you are a really good team. The Kings are. And I will always have respect for Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty. Future Hall of Famers both of them. But they do not have a generational talent like Connor McDavid. They do not have a four-time, fifty-goal scorer like Leon Draisaitl. They do not have an elite offensive and Power Play merchant like Evan Bouchard on their blueline, etc. Up and down the lineup Edmonton is a more highly skilled team. But are they a better team? That has yet to be determined.

Los Angeles had the better goaltending going in. After all, Darcy Kuemper is a Vezina nominee. The Kings were a better defensive hockey team this regular season. They allowed the second-fewest goals in the regular season (203). And they were also the more physical teams, 1,742 hits (fifteenth) versus Edmonton at 1,241 (last). But as series go on, do the more skilled teams in this league have a particular advantage? Put another way, if the more skilled team meets the other guy in the alley with the requisite work rate, then does skill ultimately win out in the end? Elite talent alone will likely not win a championship on its own. But if those same elite players put in the work?

There is some evidence of that, and in Stan Bowman’s past, no-less. In 2014-15, Bowman was the General Manager of the Chicago Black Hawks. They met the Anaheim Ducks in Round Three. Bowman’s Hawks took a while to get warmed up. Anaheim took a three games to two series lead after an O/T loss. But Chicago stormed back to humble the Ducks 5-2 in Game Six before sealing the series with a 5-3 triumph in Game Seven. But wait…it happened to them again in the Stanley Cup Final. The Black Hawks fell behind 2-1 to Tampa Bay after a 3-2 decision in Game Three. But then the Hawks stormed back to win the next three and take the series and the Cup, 4-2. Go back just a little further and you see it again: In 2012-13, the Hawks fell behind 3-1 in games to the Detroit Red Wings before winning on O/T 2-1 in Game Seven. Here’s looking at you, Brent Seabrook.

And hey…I get that this is not exactly an apples-to-apples comparison. These two teams in 2025 are not the exact same teams paired up in series a decade ago. But the possible path to victory in he two eras I am describing is not dissimilar.

And look: The skill still needs to skill. In other words, this interesting theory is all fine and good and may well have some history on its side…

…but they will still need to play the games.