The shortest player on the Edmonton Oilers roster had their biggest goal on Saturday night.
Kailer Yamamoto scored with 3 minutes, 2 seconds remaining for his first point of the series as the Oilers beat the Los Angeles Kings 5-4 in Game 6 to advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
In a series dominated by superstars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, it was the Oilers’ fourth line that played a pivotal role. Besides Yamamoto, Klim Kostin had two goals and an assist.
Photo: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY
“It didn’t go in the net early in the series, but he stuck with it. He stuck with it and eventually ended up scoring the series winner,” Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft said.
Yamamoto — who lived in Los Angeles for three years and played youth hockey for the Jr. Kings — got possession of the puck deep in the offensive zone, skated around and then sent a wrist shot through traffic and past the right shoulder and stick of Kings goaltender Joonas Korpisalo.
“Being in this position it’s pretty crazy. Playing against them last year you get your hopes up,” Yamamoto said about scoring a pivotal goal against the Kings. “To be able to beat them is an amazing feeling.”
Next up for Edmonton is the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round. The NHL has not announced a date for Game 1.
In Tampa Bay, Florida, the Toronto Maple Leafs finally advanced, and coach Sheldon Keefe struggled to find the right words to capture the moment.
“It’s been a long road for a lot of our guys... They’ve been through a lot, been questioned a lot,” he said after John Tavares scored 4:35 into overtime, and the Maple Leafs beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 for their first post-season win in nearly two decades.
“Today is a significant step, but we’re not going to celebrate anything beyond,” Keefe added. “There’s a lot of work ahead... I feel like the best is yet to come.”
Ending a frustrating drought that included first-round exits each of the past six years, the Maple Leafs won the best-of-seven matchup in six games and advanced to the Eastern Conference semi-finals against the Boston Bruins or Florida Panthers.
“You’re relieved, and you’re happy,” Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly said. “At the same time, it’s the first round. We want to keep going.”
In New York, Chris Kreider had another power-play goal and two assists as the New York Rangers beat the New Jersey Devils 5-2 to force a deciding Game 7.
Mika Zibanejad and Vladimir Tarasenko each had a goal and an assist for New York, which totaled just two goals while losing the previous three games. Barclay Goodrow and Braden Schneider also scored, and Adam Fox added two assists. Igor Shesterkin stopped 34 shots.
“We came here to win one game. I think you heard everyone talk about that,” Zibanejad said. “Wins are all that matter, and we got the win we needed and wanted tonight. Now we just keep going.”
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