NHL playoffs: Kings beat Oilers in OT on controversial winner for 2-1 series lead

After a nearly seven-minute video review, Trevor Moore's overtime winner stood as the Los Angeles Kings secured a wild Game 3 win to take a 2-1 series lead over the Edmonton Oilers Friday night.

The Kings opened the scoring late in the first period with Alex Iafallo — the overtime hero in Game 1 — banging one past Stuart Skinner. Connor McDavid then found the back of the net for the first time this series nearly eight minutes into the middle frame before burying his second less than two minutes later.

Adrian Kempe scored his third of the series midway through the third period, burying an incredible end-board bounce pass off the stick of Viktor Arvidsson.

Kings goalie Joonas Korpisalo was stellar once again, stopping 38 of 40 shots in the win, while Skinner made 28 stops for the Oilers in the loss.

Controversy on Moore's OT goal, but it stands after review

It took nearly seven minutes for a replay review to confirm the decisive goal, but ultimately Moore’s OT tally stood. For Oilers fans and people who love to watch replays, deciding if Gabriel Vilardi touched the puck with a high stick before Moore scored will be their latest answer to the “Zapruder film.”

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman gave some added insight on the goal review, noting there was “no conclusive evidence” the puck hit Vilardi’s stick up high, leading to the goal call on the ice standing.

Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft was convinced, however, by McDavid pleading for a high-stick stoppage both during the play itself, and during the review.

"I thought it's a play where the greatest player in the world is two feet away as it happens and his arm comes straight up in the air because he knows it hits the stick, otherwise he wouldn't put his arm up he would keep playing," Woodcroft said. "It appears to me in the video that the puck is going straight up in a trajectory and deadens. In the end I'm going to go with the greatest player in the world who's two feet away."

Clunky start, clunky finish

To an extent, it’s fitting for Game 3 to end with a long, clunky video review, because the contest opened as a bit of a mess.

Indeed, the first period of Game 3 between the Kings and Oilers was odd. Not necessarily “Will Ferrell decked out in ska-reminiscent checkers facepaint” odd, but off-beat nonetheless.

There were five penalty calls during the first 20 minutes alone, including offsetting minors when Arvidsson threw his stick and then got sent whirling by Darnell Nurse. At first, officials reacted to the pageantry of a spinning Arvidsson by calling for a major penalty, but then downgraded it to a two-minute minor.

Arvidsson ended up fine — folks who get wound up by claims of embellishment might say “a little too fine” — and would factor into plenty of scoring chances for the Kings as Game 3 went along.

With about 30 seconds remaining in an off-rhythm first period, Iafallo made it 1-0 for the Kings.

McDavid breaks through, Draisaitl keeps showing up in the record book

Through about half of the second period, the Oilers seemed off, undoubtedly in part because of the Kings’ strong structure. Yet, just when it was tempting to wonder if McDavid just didn’t have it in Game 3 (before that, he’d created chances but hadn’t been able to convert), No. 97 decided to take matters into his own superbly talented hands.

Late in a power play, McDavid found some space around the left faceoff dot and beat Korpisalo up high. Less than two minutes later, McDavid scored in a strikingly similar way — and from just about the same spot on the ice.

If McDavid imposing his will wasn’t impressive enough, consider that he was seen flexing his leg after another hit by Drew Doughty, who heading into the series said the Kings would try to avoid penalties but still “smack” McDavid.

In 18 career games against the Kings, McDavid now has 10 goals and 13 assists for 23 points.

With an assist on McDavid’s second goal, Draisaitl reached 30-plus points in 20 playoff games, becoming the fourth fastest NHL player to reach that mark. Only Wayne Gretzky (13), Mario Lemieux (16) and Peter Stastny (19) reached 30-plus playoff points quicker than Draisaitl did.

Passions boiling over into bad penalties

Both of McDavid’s tallies were power-play goals, a reminder not to give Edmonton too many special teams chances. Yet, you can still argue the Oilers are giving the Kings extra chances by losing their cool.

For example: Draisaitl was whistled for unsportsmanlike conduct after that second McDavid goal. That call killed much of the Oilers’ momentum, especially since the Kings made Edmonton pay.

Arvidsson made an incredible long-distance pass off the far wall behind Skinner, setting up Kempe for yet another big goal.

Draisaitl, Evander Kane and other Oilers players need to do a better job straddling the line between being passionate and recklessly taking penalties, or they’ll keep leaving the door open for the opportunistic Kings.

Granted, some of it may boil down to being lucky or unlucky enough for officials to see an infraction when it happens — and maybe even when it happens, as calls often dry up later in a tied playoff game.

In the end, another overtime penalty cost the Oilers big time. This is a gut-punch loss for Edmonton, yet maybe the best way to respond isn’t with your gut, but with your brain.

After Game 3, Draisaitl said that the Oilers need to be smarter, but said more than once that he doesn’t “know what the standard is” right now.