May 12, 2025 by Ryan Lotsberg

After losing Game 3 and getting a win in Game 2 despite being mostly outplayed, the Edmonton Oilers needed a rebound performance against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 4. They got exactly that.

The first period was absolute chaos! The Oilers were getting into Adin Hill’s grill, and he wasn’t having it. Zach Hyman went to the net to screen Hill on a scoring chance early in the game, and Hill pushed Hyman after the shot went wide. The Oilers scored the 2-0 goal by crashing the net, and pushing and shoving ensued. Hill and Mattias Janmark clipped skates in the crease at one point, and another brawl broke out. I think Hill stuck his skate out to initiate contact with Janmark, but I digress. The Oilers left that crazy first period with a 2-0 lead.

The Oilers added one more to go up 3-0 in the second period, and that was all they needed. That was the final score in Game 4. The Oilers shutout the Golden Knights and pushed them to the brink of elimination.

Callouts

Who do I call out in a 3-0 shutout win? That was a fantastic effort from the Oilers. I’ll give them a night off from calling them out.

Standouts

Many Oilers fans thought this series was over once Stuart Skinner was forced to enter the series after Calvin Pickard got hurt. Skinner struggled in round one before ceding his crease to PIckard, and he wasn’t particularly good in Game 3. That game-winning goal by the Golden Knights with 0.4 seconds left in Game 3 stung.

Related: Like it or not, Skinner is in

There was some expected trepidation about Skinner leading up to Game 4, but that was unwarranted. Skinner basically told his haters to shove it with his performance tonight! Skinner made 24 saves for his second career playoff shutout! He is 8-0 in Game 4s since 2023, and he now has the lowest goals against average of any goalie all-time in Game 4s. Skinner looked comfortable in the net for the first time in a while, which was great to see. Good for Skinner. What a performance in a pressure packed situation with all the doubters and the potential of heading back to Vegas all square. Instead, the Oilers will head to Vegas with a chance to end the series.

Adam Henrique was also great in Game 3. He scored two of the three goals in the game. He found himself open in the slot just 1:27 into the game, and he made no mistake. You have to watch the replay of his second goal closely to truly appreciate it. Evander Kane crashed the net, and Henrique followed. There was a lot of traffic in the crease, but the rebound came to Henrique. He put his stick through his own legs and roofed the puck! Henrique celebrated by sliding towards the boards on his knees. He gets full marks for the goal and the celly!

Shoutouts

Kane was fantastic. He got a goal and an assist along with four shots and six hits. Kane was in on the forecheck on the opening goal. He crashed the net hard on the Henrique goal. He also got the 3-0 goal by streaking down the left wing and ripping one under Hill’s blocker. Kane is at his best when he’s in the mix physically, and the points tend to follow. All of that happened for him in Game 4.

Connor Brown was great in Game 4. The forecheck on the game’s first goal was mostly him, and he fed Henrique in front of the net after stripping the puck away from the Golden Knights defender. He had a couple of scoring chances of his own as well.

Darnell Nurse was solid. He delivered three hard hits and was plus two in 23:33 of action. He also stepped in when Kane was getting attacked by two Golden Knights after Henrique’s second goal. That was a much better effort than he had in Game 3.

Two Oilers made their 2025 playoff debuts in Game 4. Troy Stecher played 16:46 and was reliable. I particularly enjoyed the sequence between him and Brett Howden in the third period. They had a race to a puck behind the Oilers net. Howden elbowed Stecher in the face at the Oilers blue line, but Stecher maintained inside position while shaking his helmet back onto his head. Stecher then reverse hit Howden when they approached the boards, and Howden crashed into the boards while Stecher skated away with the puck. That sequence perfectly describes Stecher. He plays bigger than he is, and he moves the puck well.

Kasperi Kapanen also entered the lineup in Game 4. I noticed a shift in the first period where he laid out Alex Pietrangelo behind the Golden Knights net, then he leveled someone else in the neutral zone seconds later. Those were two of his five hits on the night. Kapanen isn’t known as a physical player, but he brought the heat in Game 4.

Wrap

That was the performance that the Oilers needed in Game 4. The Golden Knights had outplayed the Oilers in the previous two games. The series would’ve had a much different feel if the Oilers had lost both games at home after stealing two wins in Vegas to open the series. Now they will head to Vegas with a chance to thrust the sword through the Golden Knights’ hearts and close out the series on Wednesday night.

Related: Callouts, Standouts, and Shoutouts: Oilers fall to the Golden Knights in Game 3 heartbreaker