As the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings prepare to face off in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, tensions have reached a boiling point. Monday’s 5-0 blowout by the Kings only added fuel to an already intense rivalry, especially after a chippy, penalty-filled affair that saw multiple misconducts and ejections—including one for Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse, who was tossed for a dangerous cross-check to Quinton Byfield’s head. Nurse will have a hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety on Tuesday.
But it wasn’t just the physical play that made headlines. Kings’ forward,Phillip Danault,took a direct shot at the Oilers on Monday night, saying that the team iced their “B-squad” in an attempt to injure the Kings players intentionally.
Is Danault Intentionally Starting a Dangerous Rumor?
“They just have their B-squad in trying to hurt us,” Danault said, clearly upset with how the game unfolded. It’s a fairly serious accusation to make, which is either coming from an emotional place of frustration, or he’s actively trying to steer the narrative ahead of the games slated for Round 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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While Danault’s frustration may be understandable, given the physical tone of the contest, the claim that Edmonton dressed a second-rate lineup with malicious intent doesn’t make much sense. In fact, there are at least three clear reasons why he’s off-base here.
Injuries and Rest, Not Strategy
Danault’s accusation overlooks the very real injury issues the Oilers are dealing with. Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman, Evander Kane, Trent Frederic, Jake Walman, and Mattias Ekholm were all either injured or unavailable for precautionary rest purposes. Connor McDavid was held out of the game to manage a lingering issue as well. Yes, those are the Oilers’ top stars sitting. No, it wasn’t because the team wanted them out.
The Oilers understood that home-ice advantage was going to be tough to earn, but a lot was riding on this game. To suggest the Oilers would simply throw it away to take a piece of the Kings’ top players means Edmonton didn’t care about getting a serious leg up in the playoffs against a team that has a stellar home record this season.
Instead of icing a “B-squad” to cause chaos, the Oilers had little choice but to rely on depth players and call-ups out of necessity. Anyone who could have played but didn’t was likely scratched to avoid further injury in a game that was bound to get ugly.
Corey Perry’s Sharp Rebuttal
Veteran forward Corey Perry, never one to shy away from confrontation, pushed back hard on Danault’s accusation. He was right in sarcastically asking what the Kings and Danault expected them to do.
“What the fu— sorry, excuse my language. What do you want us to do? Did he not look at what’s happened the last couple of weeks?” Perry said. “We’re not out there to hurt anybody. Nothing else — move on.”
Perry’s reaction was likely similar to what most fans and insiders felt about that game—it was between two teams who don’t like each other much and little more. There are plenty of NHL games that get chaotic when two teams have the kind of history the Kings and Oilers do. Edmonton was losing, and they weren’t about to go down quietly, accepting a loss without sending a message prior to the playoffs. That’s normal.
The Oilers didn’t ice a weaker lineup by choice. Perry rightfully pointed out that the team is focused on health and not intentionally trying to hurt anyone. Even Nurse’s cross-check, which could result in a one-game suspension, was little more than a player caught up in emotion, and he took things too far. It is not likely the NHL DoPS deems it a deliberate attempt to injure.
No Incentive for Edmonton to Risk Reputation or Discipline
The idea that Edmonton would intentionally deploy a group to injure opponents defies logic, especially when you look at how the team is constructed. The Oilers are far from a physically intimidating group. They rank last in the NHL in hits, and many of their toughest players weren’t even dressed.
If Edmonton wanted to attack the Kings, it would have sent Josh Brown out to start a fight. That didn’t happen. Vasily Podkolzin would have done more than go after a couple of Kings players when scrums began. Perry himself has had five fights this season. He would have thrown down, too, in a game this lopsided. There was no Trent Frederic and no Evander Kane. Those two should be available in the playoffs. Not to mention, the Kings were assessed eight minor penalties in the first two periods.
It wasn’t until the game got out of reach that things started getting out of hand.
The Oilers had a lot to lose going into the postseason. Home-ice advantage was still in play, and every game leading into the playoffs matters. Deliberately engaging in what Danault has suggested would have led to more potential suspensions than what might be facing Nurse. So too, the Oilers could have been further injured, which they can’t afford.
The only benefit the Oilers got from a rough game like Monday’s was sending a message that they weren’t going down without a fight and that the Kings should be ready for a battle next week.
