Oilers chase Quick, defeat Kings in Game 3

LOS ANGELES --Evander Kane had a hat trick for the Edmonton Oilers in an 8-2 win against the Los Angeles Kings in Game 3 of the Western Conference First Round at Crypto.com Arena on Friday.

Edmonton leads the best-of-7 series 2-1. Game 4 will be here on Sunday.
"We're just finding ways to win games," said Oilers captain Connor McDavid, who had two assists for his third straight multipoint game. "That's all that matters this time of the year. It doesn't matter how it looks or how it happens."
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman each had two goals and an assist, Leon Draisaitl had a goal and an assist, and Mike Smith made 44 saves for Edmonton, the No. 2 seed from the Pacific Division.
Anze Kopitar had a goal and an assist for Los Angeles, the No. 3 seed from the Pacific. Jonathan Quick allowed four goals on 17 shots before being replaced in the second period by Cal Petersen, who made 16 saves on 20 shots.
"That's a big slap in the face tonight, and we got to regroup," Kings forward Phillip Danault said. "Luckily, it's only 2-1 in the series, so we got to regroup and step up next game."
RELATED: [Complete Oilers vs. Kings series coverage]
Draisaitl scored for the third straight game to put the Oilers ahead 1-0 at 3:50 of the first period, scoring off a pass from McDavid on a 2-on-1.
Draisaitl is the third Oilers player in the past 30 years to score in three straight games to start a postseason, joining McDavid (2020) and Bill Guerin (1998).
Hyman made it 2-0 at 6:07, standing alone at the left post and redirecting in a backdoor pass from McDavid on the power play.
Los Angeles outshot Edmonton 19-7 in the first period.
"Any time you can come into someone's building and get the jump on them, I think it's huge," McDavid said. "I thought they had a great first period. We didn't deserve to be up two but held on."

Kane extended the lead to 3-0 at 6:27 of the second period. He collected his own rebound after redirecting Cody Ceci's point shot and tucked the puck past Quick's outstretched left pad.
"He finds a way to put it in the back of the net," McDavid said of Kane, who has five goals in the past two games. "He's hard on the forecheck, physical, and he seems to be in the right spot at the right time."
Hyman made it 4-0 at 7:42, warding off Andreas Athanasiou in a battle for the loose puck before shooting under Quick's arm, and Kane chipped the rebound of a shot from Ceci over Petersen for a 5-0 lead at 9:51.
Kopitar scored on a backhand from just outside the crease to make it 5-1 at 10:07, ending a run of 11 consecutive goals for the Oilers dating back to their 6-0 win in Game 2 on Wednesday.
Danault cut it to 5-2 at 17:29, backhanding in the rebound of Adrian Kempe's one-timer on the power play.
"We got to have more confidence," Danault said. "We're a good team. We're not in the playoffs for no reason. We also have to learn. We have to play better under pressure, you know. Tape-to-tape execution's got to be better, but every area has got to be better. Defensively as well. Neutral zone, O-zone, everywhere."

Nugent-Hopkins pushed the lead back to 6-2 at 14:19 of the third, snapping his stick on a wrist shot from the left circle that went five-hole on Petersen. He then made it 7-2 at 15:40 by chipping in a pass from Josh Archibald.
Kane completed his hat trick at 19:40 for the 8-2 final. He is the 12th Oilers player to score three goals in a playoff game and the first to do so on the road since Esa Tikkanen did it in Game 5 of the 1992 Division Semifinals, which was also against the Kings.
"I think our 5-on-5 game has gotten a lot better," Kane said. "Obviously, our special teams have been good throughout these three games. I think it's that time of year where you want to raise your game to a different level, and I think there's a lot of guys doing that right now."
NOTES: Edmonton has scored at least six goals in consecutive playoff games for the first time since Games 4 and 5 of the 2006 Western Conference Final against the San Jose Sharks. … McDavid has six points (one goal, five assists) in the series. … Kings forward Carl Grundstrom did not play because of an undisclosed injury.