The Edmonton Oilers are putting their foot fully on the gas pedal.
They lost Game 1 of their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series against the Los Angeles Kings, and ahead of Wednesday’s second game, they’re doing something unexpected with superstars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
The Oilers will be rolling McDavid and Draisaitl out on their first line to open the game.
Usually, McDavid is on line one and Draisaitl is on line two to split up their generational talents. They do join forces on the power play, but rarely at even strength.
It’s a definite gamble for Edmonton, which is looking for a spark.
They run the risk of minimizing the possible impact any of their other lines can have on the game.
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At the same time, the Oilers may be looking at huge minute totals for McDavid and Draisaitl to try to get back in the series, and they might figure the simplest way to do that is to just keep them out there together as much as possible.
During the regular season, Draisaitl had 52 goals and 54 assists in 71 games, and McDavid had 26 goals and 74 assists in 67 games.
The Oilers are likely hoping McDavid can feed Draisaitl for an early goal to set the tone.
Just because they open the game together doesn’t lock them into that configuration, either.
If it means the Oilers start fast, it’ll be a risk that was well worth it.
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