Oilers fans have been patient. In perpetual reconstruction for 15 years, they are just beginning to see the end of the tunnel, with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
Posted at 8:00 a.m.
The Oilers are participating in the playoffs for the second consecutive year, a first since… 2001!
They have also just reached the second round for the second time in six years, after a decade of exclusion from the playoffs between 2007 and 2017.
The Oilers have four players on their current roster drafted from the top 4McDavid, Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jesse Puljujarvi, and two other picks in the top 10Darnell Nurse and Evan Bouchard.
Their great rivals, the Flames, have chosen a different strategy. They have always refused to rebuild. They’ve made the playoffs five times in the past eight years, but this spring made it through the second round for the second time since the feat under Bob Hartley in 2015. They have two players drafted sixth overall, Matthew Tkachuk and Sean Monahan, but no others in the top 10.
The Oilers had a little scare against the Los Angeles Kings, before McDavid went into second gear. The Flames barely beat the Dallas Stars in overtime in Game 7.
McDavid, 25, has had an amazing start to his career. He already has 697 points in just 487 games, is coming off a fourth scoring championship in seven years and is aiming for a third Hart Trophy as most valuable player. But he will not enter the legend before having won the Cup.
To at least reach the four aces, good old Mike Smith, 40, will have to be as solid as he was in the first round. Jakob Markstrom remains a safe bet in net for the Flames.
Players to follow
PHOTO SERGEI BELSKI, USA TODAY SPORTS ARCHIVES
Johnny Gaudreau
Edmonton: Connor McDavid had 14 points in the first round, five more than Leon Draisaitl.
Calgary: Often criticized for his half-hearted performances during the playoffs, Johnny Gaudreau played the heroes with the winning goal in Game 7, his eighth point of the playoffs.
Players under the radar
Edmonton : Evander Kane was a controversial acquisition, but he’s worth his weight in gold. He scored seven goals in as many matches in the first round.
Calgary : At home, defensive center Mikael Backlund will no doubt have to face McDavid. No small task!