Yamamoto making big impact for Oilers heading into Game 3 against Kings

LOS ANGELES -- Part rat and part gnat are recent descriptions of Edmonton Oilers forward Kailer Yamamoto, the pint-sized pest making an impact on the Western Conference First Round against the Los Angeles Kings.

Yamamoto (5-foot-8, 153 pounds) has two points (one goal, one assist) in the first two games of the best-of-7 series, which the teams have split. Game 3 is at Crypto.com Arena on Friday (10 p.m. ET; TBS, CBC, TVAS, SN, BSSC).
"I definitely think my game's changed a little bit (since junior), but I think the foundation is still there," Yamamoto said. "Still a tenacious player, wants the puck, wants to go to the hard areas, plays physical.
"Ever since I was a little kid, I was always the smallest on my team growing up. I think having those attributes to my game helps."
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The 23-year-old was selected in the first round (No. 22) by the Oilers in the 2017 NHL Draft after playing for his hometown team in Spokane of the Western Hockey League. He found a fit this season as one of Edmonton's top six forwards, on a line with Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman.
Each outweighs him by at least 55 pounds (Draisaitl is 6-2, 208; Hyman is 6-1, 211) but Yamamoto more than holds his own.
"I think [Yamamoto], he plays inside you," Draisaitl said. "And that's annoying as an opponent. He plays inside your equipment. He gets underneath you, sometimes probably underneath your legs, too, somehow. I think he's a pest to play against. He's not fun to go up against. It's contagious. Personally, I can't play the way he does for 60 minutes. I'm not that type of player, but it is contagious within our group for sure.
"He's in your face. He keeps pucks alive. He makes good plays when he has the puck. Just an all-around really good hockey player. We need him to continue to play that way."
Yamamoto said he has not necessarily modeled his game after former NHL forward Martin St. Louis (5-8, 176), now coach of the Montreal Canadiens, and NHL forwards Tyler Johnson (5-8, 185) and Patrick Kane (5-10, 177) of the Chicago Blackhawks and Johnny Gaudreau (5-9, 165) of the Calgary Flames, but that he always felt inspired by their willingness to engage and succeed against bigger opponents.
Yamamoto had 41 points (20 goals, 21 assists) in 81 games this season but his tenacity and his improvement, once Jay Woodcroft became coach on Feb. 10 after Dave Tippett was fired, kept him regularly on the line with Draisaitl and Hyman.
He had 25 points (12 goals, 13 assists) in 37 games after Feb. 10.
"You don't play in the NHL at his size unless you have a giant heart," Woodcroft said. "So he's got a strong willingness to play the game hard, to go to hard areas, and he's had success. He's somebody who comes to the rink every day with a purpose. He's excited about playing in the NHL and demonstrating his skill set. He helps do work for people and as a result, he's a popular linemate."

Yamamoto is learning quickly how to walk the line better between emotional and physical play, including stirring up opponents, and putting his skills to work to impact the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Woodcroft said. It will be an important element for Game 3 and beyond in this series.
"Playing with emotion is critical to why he's had success, not only at the American [Hockey] League level but here in the NHL. He demonstrates a will in his game and I think that will … is contagious. He's an important player. He touches all facets of the game and he's had a heck of a last two and a half months and he's carried it on into the playoffs."
Last season as a rookie, Yamamoto had 26 points (11 goals, 15 assists) in 27 games but he was held without a point when the Oilers were swept by the Winnipeg Jets in the best-of-7 Stanley Cup First Round.
He said there was a definite lesson from that playoff disappointment that's helping him in the first round this season.
"Last year, I think I learned don't get too high, don't get too low," Yamamoto said. "I felt like I got so amped up, I wanted that physicality all the time, I just forgot about the puck a little bit. This year, I'm trying to still play that way but focus on the puck more. Obviously you can't score if you don't have the puck."