Oilers take control over Stars: Game 3 grades, takeaways

While fans successful Edmonton and Dallas are ever singing astir however they person friends successful debased places, lone 1 of them has the precocious crushed successful the Western Conference finals. And that's the Oilers aft their 6-1 win Sunday successful Game 3 to instrumentality a 2-1 bid lead.

With the bid tied heading into Sunday, the nonsubjective for Game 3 was to summation a steadfast grasp of the league finals, and the Oilers did conscionable that by having 5 players with multipoint performances. As for the Stars, losing Game 3 near them trailing a bid for the 2nd clip this postseason, with the lone different specified occurrence coming aft Game 1 against the Colorado Avalanche successful the archetypal round.

Now that the Oilers are successful power of the series, what does it mean for them going forward? What indispensable the Stars bash otherwise up of Game 4 for them to instrumentality location tied alternatively than a crippled distant from elimination? Ryan S. Clark and Greg Wyshynski analyse those questions portion delving into what lies up for 2 teams that not lone faced each different successful the league finals past play but betwixt them person been progressive successful each league last since 2020.

Edmonton Oilers
Grade: A

Much could alteration betwixt present and whenever the playoffs end. But for now, the statement could beryllium made that this was the astir important playoff crippled the Oilers person had this postseason.

The Oilers person had galore beardown performances, specified arsenic Game 3 against the Los Angeles Kings successful the archetypal circular oregon their last 2 games against the Vegas Golden Knights successful the league semifinals. But what made the Oilers' show successful Game 3 against Dallas arguably their astir important was that they recovered a equilibrium betwixt being hard successful the antiaircraft portion portion not relying connected a shutout to execute that objective.

The Stars finished with 37 shots, 13 high-danger chances successful 5-on-5 play and scored lone once. Connor McDavid has repeatedly stressed that the Oilers tin play defense, and that has been made wide implicit their past 5 games. But Sunday proved they didn't request Stuart Skinner oregon their antiaircraft operation to blank an hostile to win. -- Ryan S. Clark

Dallas Stars
Grade: C+

The last people doesn't bespeak the bulk of this game, which Dallas manager Pete DeBoer tin excavation for positives among the galore (many) negatives and immoderate mitigating circumstances. Having Roope Hintz lukewarm up but not beryllium capable to spell due to the fact that of the ft wounded helium sustained from a Darnell Nurse slash successful Game 2? That's deflating. Having the on-ice officials miss a delay-of-game telephone connected Brett Kulak successful the archetypal play lone to person Evan Bouchard unfastened the scoring 10 seconds later? Also deflating.

So it's to the Stars' recognition that they got to their crippled astatine 5-on-5 successful Game 3 amended than they person successful immoderate crippled of the series, astatine slightest earlier Edmonton ran up the people successful the third. The results weren't determination and a nonaccomplishment is simply a nonaccomplishment -- and a nonaccomplishment by this borderline is hard to tummy -- but their 2nd play and the performances from immoderate of their slumbering extent players springiness the Stars astatine slightest a glimmer.

But there's nary question Edmonton has this happening successful good successful hand, and the Stars person to find a mode to lick Skinner, which is not thing I thought I'd beryllium penning astatine this signifier of the postseason. -- Greg Wyshynski

Three Stars of Game 3

1. Zach Hyman
LW, Oilers

Two goals and an assistance for his seventh vocation multigoal playoff game. Hyman's 2nd extremity was the Oilers' 4th disconnected a rush, the astir successful 1 crippled by immoderate squad this postseason. Hyman besides was plus-5 Sunday.

2. Evan Bouchard/Brett Kulak
D, Oilers

Bouchard scored his sixth extremity of the postseason and these 2 were connected the crystal for the archetypal 2 Edmonton goals. At 5-on-5 this postseason, the Oilers are outscoring their opponents 7-1, and 5-0 successful this series, erstwhile Bouchard and Kulak are connected the ice.

play

0:48

Connor McDavid restores Oilers' 2-goal lead

Connor McDavid finds the backmost of the nett to reconstruct the Oilers' two-goal pb vs. the Stars.

3. Connor McDavid
C, Oilers

For each the speech astir the deficiency of goals from the champion hockey subordinate successful the satellite (which was unusual due to the fact that helium had 20 points successful 13 games and was a plus-7 entering Game 3 contempt having lone 3 goals), McDavid punched retired a brace of tucks for his sixth vocation multigoal playoff game. Also, seeing McDavid with the puck barreling toward the nett connected a 3-on-1 is nightmare substance for opponents. -- Arda Öcal

Players to ticker successful Game 4

Zach Hyman
LW, Oilers

To spell from 16 goals past postseason to lone 3 goals entering Game 3 of the league finals is 1 mode to measure Hyman. Another is to recognize that helium has been the astir carnal subordinate connected a squad that is among the tallest and heaviest successful the NHL.

Hyman came into Game 3 starring the NHL with 99 hits. He remained carnal Sunday by starring the mode with six hits successful a crippled that saw the Oilers proceed their punishing benignant with 47. But to past spot Hyman people 2 goals and decorativeness with 3 points successful summation to that physicality? It erstwhile again adds to the communicative that the Oilers mightiness not lone person much dimensions than past season's team, they could beryllium amended than the squad that finished Stanley Cup runner-up successful 2024. -- Clark

play

0:53

Zach Hyman's 2nd extremity puts Oilers up 4

Zach Hyman taps location his 2nd extremity of the crippled to enactment the Oilers up 5-1 vs. the Stars.

Jake Oettinger
G, Stars

This is the archetypal two-game losing streak for the Dallas goaltender successful the playoffs. A batch of what happened successful Game 3 wasn't needfully connected him -- a McDavid quality and a Hyman breakaway were among the Edmonton tallies -- but extracurricular of the 3rd play of Game 1, helium has not been a difference-maker successful this series. Oettinger came into the crippled starring the playoffs with 5.58 goals saved supra expected, according to Stathletes. The Stars person been capable to beryllium connected him arsenic a slump-breaker. But this is his 3rd crippled with a prevention percent southbound of .900 successful the series. As the Stars effort to physique connected immoderate positives from this game, they request Oettinger to supply the instauration for it -- and successful the process, soundlessness those "U.S. backup!" chants from the Oilers fans. -- Wyshynski

Big questions for Game 4

Are the Oilers astir to bash to the Stars what they did to the Golden Knights?

Simply put, the Oilers are wherever anticipation goes to die. Teams successful a title model that person yet to triumph a rubric are ever being judged connected their evolution. What the Oilers did to the Stars a twelvemonth agone successful the league finals by winning the past 3 games showed that they could adjacent retired a bid aft trailing. This postseason Edmonton has shown a calculated and methodical coldness erstwhile it comes to putting distant opponents.

The Golden Knights won Game 3 connected a last-second extremity to make the content they mightiness person recovered an opening. They didn't people again for the remainder of the playoffs aft being successful the apical 5 of goals per crippled passim the regular season. Breaking retired for six goals to unfastened the bid seemed to beryllium a motion the Stars mightiness person recovered an opening. Since then? They've scored lone erstwhile successful the past six periods portion facing questions astir what has happened to different squad that went from being successful the apical 5 successful goals per crippled successful the regular season. -- Clark

Can Dallas marque Edmonton uncomfortable astatine all?

Our workfellow Mark Messier made this constituent betwixt periods of Game 3: The Stars person yet to bash thing to get McDavid oregon Leon Draisaitl disconnected their games. That extends to the remainder of the Oilers. Outside of an anomalous tally of 3 power-play goals successful the 3rd play of Game 1, determination person been precious fewer instances of the Stars carrying play for agelong stretches oregon putting a scare into Edmonton astatine 5-on-5.

They had that for a spot successful Game 3 with a ascendant 2nd period: plus-14 successful changeable attempts, plus-11 successful scoring chances and a 10-1 vantage successful high-danger changeable attempts. But they were digging retired of a 2-0 hole, managed to get lone 1 extremity of their ain connected the committee and past McDavid stuck a dagger successful them with 19 seconds near successful the second.

The Stars request a lead. They request portion time. They request to get their unreserved crippled going: Skinner had a .897 prevention percent connected shots disconnected the unreserved entering the game. Edmonton is playing with a champion's confidence. Dallas has to find a mode to inject a small uncertainty into its hostile oregon this bid is going to extremity quickly. -- Wyshynski