With six minutes to play in a tight, 3-3 playoff game, The Big Mistake came, and it was made by Edmonton Oilers goalie Mike Smith. A leader who should know better, a veteran who made a rookie mistake. (SportsnetSpec)
After all the wins on home ice, all the work on defensive structure and settling their game down to a style that can take them somewhere in the post-season, the“It was a 3-3 hockey game in the third period,” assessed head coach Jay Woodcroft. “We made one more mistake than they did it ended up a 4-3 game.”That’s like calling Mount Everest “one hike.” Like calling Connor McDavid “one NHL player.”
“Just trying to make something happen. Obviously trying to do too much there,” said a contrite Smith after the game. “In a tight game like that you can’t get afford to make mistakes like that, and it ended up costing us a game.”For all the zone exits you get from his stick-handling prowess, there are cough ups that end up in your net.This wasn’t a physical mistake, or a bobbled puck. This was mental — a player taking too big a risk at a time in the game when the safe play is the right play.
“There are lots of emotions with fans back in the building and I thought we just didn’t handle it all that well. They got the jump on us,” said McDavid, who willed his team back into the game with a goal and an assist. “Obviously we didn’t have a great start. We gave up a few chances and found ourselves down by two. It wasn’t a good enough start in our home building.
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