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Previewing Edmonton vs Chicago. (aka: Best early round matchup.) Mon's Buzz

June 15, 2020, 12:49 PM ET [39 Comments]
Eklund
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Happy Monday Hockey World!

Thanks for the fun Gaudreau offers...I will be making a decision tomorrow...so there is still time to comment on my last post and get an offer in...

We are ONLY 25 days until camp opening and about 40 days until all hell breaks loose with multiple games a day and so much fun to be had. In my opinion, the best 2 weeks in hockey every year is the opening round of the playoffs...Having the play-in rounds is like essentially getting two opening rounds of the playoffs! Seriously, I can't wait.

So let's talk Edmonton and Chicago.

First off, these teams ALWAYS play interesting games...(remember Sam Gagner?) and the mere star power of McDavid vs. Kane will be worth the price of admission itself!

On the Oilers...
The Edmonton Oilers to be huge step forward this year, and I believe they are now past the point of being a playoff team and onto the point of being a powerhouse. Tippett turned out to be the perfect coach, and on more than one occasion, he showed how this team can succeed by playing various styles. When McDavid went down late in the season, the Oilers found another level in their defense end, showing they can also win low-scoring contests. The goaltending was more consistent than most expected, and Tippet seem to know when, and when not, to play each goalie.

On the Hawks...

Patrick Kane had a stellar season with 84 points in 70 games, while Captain Toews rebounded from a horrible year to put up 60 points and play great two-way hockey. The Hawks young guns proved out to be better than most predicted or at the least solid progression...Kubalik's 30 goals surprised us Alex Debrincat on the power play netted 10 goals and 16 assists. Dylan Strome, who I've always been a fan of, finally found his game t this level. In goal, Crawford's 2.77 GAA and .917 wasn't great and the hawks traded away Lehner at the deadline....a move they never make if they think they are going to the playoffs...

Versus each other...

The Hawks took two of the three, and watching these games again today I can happily tell you that NOT much if ANY defense will be played in this series. In goal for Edmonton, Mike Smith started all three games and in the first two gave up three goals apiece....but was AMAZING. In the first game, a 3-1 loss, Smith had a .941 save percentage. In game 2, a 5-3 win, he stopped 38 of 41 shots for a .927 Save percentage... in the final game however he was pulled after he gave up 4 goals on just 21 shots. and he Oilers trailed 4-1 going into the third...In the third Koskinen was a perfect 10 for 10 and the Oilers scored twice, but just fell short 4-3.

For the Hawks, Crawford was the story in Game 1 stopping 27 of 28 against an Oilers team that was 5-0 coming into the game...Lehner wasn't very good in Game 2, and Crawford got the win in game 3, but just barely despite the hawks outshooting the Oilers badly...

Intangibles...


The Oilers and Hawks are fascinating....The Oilers are better and younger but have very little playoff testing. the Hawks don't have quite the same young legs, but they have TONS of playoff experience... In the three games against each other in the regular season the Hawks tended to control the play....

Fun Fact...
I picked both these teams to win their respective divisions. With the Oilers, that looked pretty good most of the year, not so much for the Hawks, but they were one of the best teams over the last few weeks of the season....I picked them because I believe in their young players a lot...

My pick?

Edmonton in 5

Your pick?



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