OILERS COME TO THE END OF THE ROAD
Overtime triumph gives Avalanche the series sweep
As daunting tasks go, there's this old saying.
“When the world says `give up,' Hope whispers `ah, try it one more time.'”
It looked like we would see that, a Game 5 in Denver, but Artturi Lehkonen slapped in a rebound of a Cale Makar shot — his fifth point of the night — 79 seconds into overtime for a 6-5 victory.
Zack Kassian had tied it 5-5 with 31/2 minutes left when he batted a loose puck past Pavel Francouz after the Avs' goalie couldn't handle Leon Draisaitl's shot — his fourth assist of the night. But, they couldn't hold a two-goal lead in the third as Gabe Landeskog, Nate Mackinnon and Mikko Rantanen scored in a six-minute span to set the stage for Kassian's goal, and then the trade deadline pick-up Lehkonen's winner on Mike Smith.
Zach Hyman had two goals for the Oilers while Ryan Nugent-hopkins and Connor Mcdavid, who also had two assists, scored before Kassian on Francouz. And with the weather outside as bleak as the forecast inside Rogers Place, the Oilers couldn't stay alive in the Western conference final.
While Calgary's laconic coach Darryl Sutter said before the playoffs that any team playing Colorado would be a waste of eight days, and it was for Nashville in Round 1.
But, not for a team reaching the Final Four. Twenty-eight other teams were watching the stirring final game as the Avs' players touched the Clarence Campbell Bowl for a group photo at game's end.
With the Oilers thinking of all the pre-game cliches, after losing 8-6, 4-0 and 4-2 to Colorado in the first three games — one game at a time, one shift at a time, one pant-leg at a time — they got the job done with a short-staffed forward group as Evander Kane was suspended and Kailer Yamamoto concussed and not dressed.
Jesse Puljujarvi also missed about 20 minutes of ice-time when he fell on his shoulder heavily early in the second, leaving the Oilers with just 10 forwards over that time because they only dressed 11. That 11 included rookie winger Dylan Holloway, in his first-ever NHL game — regular-season or playoff.
After a team meeting Monday morning, Oilers defenceman Tyson Barrie was philosophical about the his club's lot in life. He shrugged off a leading question from a reporter, about the media questioning all the cliches.
“We're the ones playing the game, right? You guys can roll your eyes all you want. That's for you,” said Barrie, who used to play for the Avs before he was traded to Toronto when Makar arrived on the scene. “You don't play three in a row, you don't play four in a row; it's one at a time.”
“For us, it's what we've been doing all year. We're prepared to win one game and we know what we're up against. If you look at the statistics, it's bleak. But the only way to do it is how we've been doing it all year...one game at a time,” said Barrie.
That's been coach Jay Woodcroft's motto since he came up from Bakersfield in February. Keeping the picture small, and when you're down 3-0, that picture is the size of a postage
We know what we're up against. If you look at the statistics, it's bleak.
stamp.
“That happens when it's been drilled into you for months. That is our approach, that we're keeping our picture small and we're controlling what we can control. Excited to take care of today's business,” said Woodcroft.
It got hairy in the third with the Oilers twice having two-goal leads but the Avs wouldn't go away.
Makar had a stunning final game, playing 29 minutes, with a goal and four assists.
“He's an amazing player,” said Barrie, who was with Colorado when Makar broke in after leaving college. “Since he's been in the league, he's been exceptional He's as good as they come on the back-end and the way he skates and moves the puck and retrieves the puck, he's got every tool. A super impressive player and we're going to have to slow him down tonight and try to get some pressure on him.”