BLOG: Follow the leaders

EDMONTON, AB - When Connor McDavid sent Los Angeles Kings defenceman Mikey Anderson flying headfirst into the boards, garnering a boarding call for the captain's third-ever playoff penalty, a statement was made that there are no passengers when it comes to physical play on this Oilers squad.
"I think when your captain's throwing his weight around, it pulls everyone into the fight," goaltender Mike Smith said. "I think we talked about it, and I'm sure every team talks about it, any time you get a chance to get a lick on one of their players, it's a long series and can pay dividends in a long series."
Like the pied piper, the Oilers leaders are crashing and banging the Blue & Orange in the right direction. The so-called big guns have helped set the tone for the Oilers early in their first-round matchup against the Kings.
McDavid finished Wednesday night's contest with four hits, a departure from his regular-season average of less than one per game. He ended the hit brigade emphatically, dumping an ornery Alex Iafallo along the boards, receiving a slash to the leg for his efforts.

GAME 2: Oilers 6, Kings 0

POST-GAME VIDEO
OILERS TODAY | Post-Game 1 vs. LAK
POST-RAW | Coach Woodcroft
POST-RAW | Smith & Ryan
POST-RAW | Kane & Nurse
Full Highlights
POST-GAME WRITTEN & BLOGS

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Oilers Head Coach Jay Woodcroft was impressed by the 123-point man's willingness to engage in a side of the game that isn't always played in the offensive zone.
"When you see your leaders getting physical, guys like Leon, Connor, and Nuge finishing checks, it's contagious and pays off over the long haul," Woodcroft said.
"Throughout our lineup, there was a lot of juice and guys were getting on the body," said defenceman Darnell Nurse, who threw a few bodychecks of his own. "The crowd was getting into it, and we fed off that. We want to play hard, not just a few guys, but the whole team."
No one will ever confuse McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins with the likes of Wednesday's checking leaders Zack Kassian (six) or Josh Archibald (five), but the trio still managed to rack up nine Kings on their hit list on Wednesday night.
The willingness to sacrifice and lay everything on the line is a mentality that the whole team is adopting to hopefully make this Stanley Cup Playoff run a long one.
"It's so important, especially this time of year to have team toughness, no matter if you're Yamo's size or Nurses size," Evander Kane said. "When you see Connor getting physical and working it shows off the competitiveness he has, and that battle level you need that in the playoffs. It's important for both those guys (McDavid and Draisaitl) to show that, and they've done that so far."

The Oilers team leaders demonstrating a willingness, or even an eagerness to put their body on the line is a huge plus for the team, but there is another place they still need to set the tone - the scoresheet. It's cliché, but at this time of year a team's best players need to BE their best players and McDavid, Kane, Draisaitl, and Nurse have all done just that.
The quartet has combined for 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in the first two games of the series against the Kings. McDavid showed off his trademark and nearly unmatchable game-breaking ability in Game 1 against the Kings. With the Oilers trailing by a pair of goals after a frantic nerve and crowd-fueled beginning, the captain got the Oilers back on track in the way only he can - weaving through several Kings defenders and beating Jonathan Quick low to give Edmonton the momentum heading into the second period.
The Oilers saw tying goals by Yamamoto and Draisaitl in the period, but ultimately Edmonton was unable to overcome their shaky start and the Kings sealed a Game 1 victory on a late deflection by Phillip Danault.
In Game 2, it was Leon's turn to get the Oilers on track. After a much better opening period by Edmonton, the German tickle the twine on the powerplay with an absolute rocket of a one-timer.

"The second period was a breakout period for us, and it was led by our leaders who went out and scored a huge powerplay goal and broke the ice for us," Woodcroft said on the Draisaitl powerplay goal. "Leon scored the game-winning goal when the game was in the balance. You talk about a heck of a shot, holy cow he threaded that through the eye of a needle."
The goal got the party started for the Oilers who proceeded to pump another five pucks past Jonathan Quick for the 6-0 Game 2 victory. If Edmonton wants to have results like Wednesday's deep into the playoffs, they will likely have to continue to follow the leaders.
"When your leader goes out and he's banging bodies, it's easy for everyone else to do it too. It's playoff hockey," Smith said. "I think we did a good job with the physicality. It started in the first period and carried throughout the game, and we got a big win."