The Edmonton Oilers tied the Stanley Cup Final at two games apiece on Thursday night with a stunning 5-4 win in Game 4 that saw them erase a 3-0 deficit. Leon Draisaitl made some history with the overtime winning goal, sending the series back to Edmonton tied.
Here are some key takeaways from Edmonton’s big win:
Edmonton may have shifted momentum
First thing’s first: Edmonton needed this win, badly. Even with two potential home games remaining (Games 5 and 7), it was going to be awfully difficult to come back from a 3-1 series deficit against this Florida team.
Not only did the Oilers get the much-needed win, they got the win by overcoming a 3-0 first-period deficit to take the lead in the third, and then bounced back after allowing the game-tying goal with less than 20 seconds to play in regulation.
At either of those points, the game — and series — could have easily started to slip away from the Oilers, especially after losing back-to-back games in Games 2 and 3 and getting absolutely dominated in the latter. But the Oilers not only refused to let that happen, they may have shifted the momentum in their favor as the series goes back to Edmonton for a pivotal Game 5.
Leon Draisaitl makes history
Draisaitl is one of Edmonton’s two main superstars — along with Connor McDavid — and has not only been a top-scorer in the playoffs, he has also been incredibly clutch in big moments.
And he is doing so at an historic pace.
His game-winning goal on Thursday was his fourth overtime goal of this year’s playoffs, setting an NHL record for most overtime goals in a single postseason.
