Analysis of the Oilers–Avalanche series | Similar teams

Despite appearances, the two opponents in the Western Conference Final, the Colorado Avalanche and the Edmonton Oilers, have several things in common.

Mathias Brunet
The Press

The two clubs have experienced a long crossing of the desert and bet on a reconstruction.

The Avalanche missed the playoffs eight times in 11 years between 2009 and 2017. The Oilers missed them 12 times in 13 seasons between 2007 and 2019.

Colorado is a few seasons ahead of Edmonton, but both clubs have two of the NHL’s most formidable centers, both No. 1 picks, Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon.

The Oilers have six players drafted into the top 10 since 2011, including four in the top 4McDavid, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Leon Draisaitl and Jesse Puljujarvi.

The Avalanche have five, namely MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, Cale Makar, Mikko Rantanen and Bowen Byram, obtained in a trade for Matt Duchene, a third overall pick.

The Oilers and Avalanche are all about speed and rank first and second respectively in goals scored per game in these series – 4.33 for Edmonton and 4.30 for Colorado. They have a terrific power play success rate – 34.5% for the Avalanche, 28.2% for the Oilers.

Both are led by underrated coaches. Jared Bednar, 50, almost got the job by default in 2016 when Patrick Roy left with a bang just weeks before the start of training camp. He had never managed in the NHL.

Jay Woodcroft, 45, replaced Dave Tippett over the winter. He started his career as a video specialist in Detroit in 2005 and had never been a head coach either, except in the American League.

Bednar and Woodcroft have played in the minor professional circuits, but never in the NHL, and Bednar barely 19 games in the American League.

The Oilers and Avalanche acquired key support players in a way to achieve more playoff success: Artturi Lekhonen, Nico Sturm and Josh Manson at the trade deadline for Colorado, Zach Hyman and Duncan Keith last summer for Edmonton, then Evander Kane and Brett Kulak over the winter.

Edmonton and Colorado don’t have the best goaltenders in the NHL. Mike Smith defends at 40 with a startling .927 save percentage and 2.70 playoff average. Darcy Kuemper, 32, has a nice 2.44 save percentage but a low .904 save percentage. Everything is in place for a great series!

Players to follow

Edmonton : Connor McDavid, who else, is producing at an astonishing pace in the playoffs – he has 26 points in just 12 games. Calgary Flames head coach Darryl Sutter says his club was beaten by one player, McDavid…

Colorado : Cale Makar is the most important player in the Avalanche, by a hair before Nathan MacKinnon. He averages nearly 27 minutes per game and leads the team with 13 points in 10 games, tied with MacKinnon.

Players under the radar

Edmonton : Acquired on the free agent market after his departure from Toronto, Zach Hyman amassed 12 points, including 8 goals, on the wing of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jesse Puljujärvi. He is one of four strikers at the club to play more than 20 minutes per game.

Colorado : Joe Sakic traded one of his good defensive prospects, Justin Barron, and a second-round pick to get Artturi Lehkonen, but he already has four goals in ten playoff games and is still flawless defensively.