The Edmonton Oilers advanced to the Western Conference Final with a 1-0 overtime win to eliminate the Vegas Golden Knights in five games. After giving up the game-winning goal with 0.4 seconds remaining in the third period of Game 3, Edmonton shut out the Golden Knights in back-to-back games to seal the deal.
Their success and ability to bounce back can be attributed to head coach Kris Knoblauch’s decision-making. He’s pushing the right buttons to get the most out of his players. The Oilers’ bench boss has the luxury of having the world’s two best players in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, so he doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. He will never be nominated for the Jack Adams Award because of his talented roster. But Knoblauch deserves his flowers and should be appreciated for getting the team to this point.
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He took over the job from Jay Woodcroft in Nov. 2023 after a dreadful 3-9-1 start to the season and led them to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. He has out-coached his opponents both rounds this season because of his ability to make necessary adjustments and provide a spark to the lineup. Knoblauch ran with the same lineup for six straight games because they were winning, but he shook things up when they lost, and it worked. He made two specific lineup adjustments before Game 4, and they haven’t allowed a goal since.
Knoblauch Inserted Kasperi Kapanen
Knoblauch decided to replace Viktor Arvidsson with Kasperi Kapanen to add more speed to the lineup and help improve their pace and forecheck. This move raised some eyebrows, and people wondered why. Yes, Kapanen brought more speed, but he can be a liability defensively, and hadn’t scored a goal since Jan. 23 against the Vancouver Canucks. It would’ve been the perfect opportunity to insert Jeff Skinner into the lineup. While he’s also not great defensively, he can score and is more impactful. But the Oilers’ coach went with Kapanen, and it paid dividends. That’s why he’s the coach, and we should stop questioning his decisions.
Kapanen brought instant energy to Game 4 by laying two massive hits early and got the crowd into the game. “We came out flying. It was a difficult decision to take out two good players. They’ve been playing well, but we felt that putting in two guys that were raring to go, and the energy they provided, especially Kapanen with the hits he was making, and the skating. I think that was nice for our team to see,” Knoblauch stated during his postgame press conference following Game 4. The 28-year-old winger looked motivated and wanted to seize his opportunity. He got rewarded by playing with Draisaitl and was matched up against the Jack Eichel line at home. Then he played hero in Game 5 by scoring the only goal 7:19 into overtime to punch their ticket to the Western Conference Final. The coach showed trust in him, and he delivered.
Knoblauch Made Adjustments on the Blue Line
Knoblauch also made a key adjustment on the blue line, replacing Ty Emberson with Troy Stecher. Stecher was injured in the second-last game of the regular season against the Winnipeg Jets and hasn’t played since. He was ready to go near the end of Round 1, but the team kept winning, which prolonged his 2025 Playoff debut.
This move was much-needed. Emberson hasn’t played bad necessarily, but he was only averaging 9:29 a game, primarily on the penalty kill, which has been struggling. Meanwhile, Stecher has averaged 16:32 through his first two games. He’s eating more minutes, which takes the pressure off the rest of the defence core, and that is a valuable asset. The 31-year-old blueliner is also faster and a better puck-mover than Emberson, which was needed to counter a strong Vegas forecheck. Plus, he’s a gamer and always gives everything he has. He got elbowed in the face during Game 4 and was bleeding, but played through and finished a check on that same play.
The Oilers’ blueliner also gets the best out of Darnell Nurse. Nurse had many partners throughout the playoffs and has struggled at times. Most notably, when he was paired with Evan Bouchard. But since Stecher entered the lineup, Nurse has arguably played his best hockey of the postseason. Out of all the Oilers defencemen, Nurse has played the most with Stecher, so there’s familiarity and comfort with that duo.
Knoblauch made these two crucial adjustments and deserves some credit for getting this team to the Western Conference Final once again. Keep following The Hockey Writers as we continue the playoffs and approach the conference finals.
