EDITOR'S NOTE: Western Standard reporter Arthur Green, a Flames fan, abd Lee Harding, an Oilers fan, are having some fun in the Battle of Alberta with whomever team wins, getting to write a game story. Sadly, Harding gets another chance today..The dynamic line of Evander Kane, Connor McDavid, and Leon Draisaityl led the Oilers to a 4-1 victory over the Flames Sunday in Game 3 in a match for the record books..Draisaityl set an NHL record for assists in a period. He assisted on a Zach Hyman near the start of the second period, plus three goals in six minutes scored by Kane. McDavid assisted on the Hyman goal and two of Kane’s, helping the line to 10 points on the night and a +10 rating..The first period was a goalie show, with 21 saves for the Flames’ Jacob Markstrom and 7 for Edmonton’s Mike Smith. Markstrom gave up four goals on 12 shots in the second period and was replaced at the start of the third period by Dan Vladar, who saved all 7 shots he faced..If stats told the whole tale, Markstrom would look like he couldn’t stop a beach ball this series. His 5.74 goals against average and .853 save percentage put him on the level of a beer league goalie—who drinks before the game. Flames coach Darryl Sutter insists Markstrom’s not bad, it’s just the Oilers are great. .“I thought 'Marky' [Markstrom] in the first period, probably made three or four saves that kept it at no score. But I just think give Edmonton credit the way they played in [the neutral zone], and it fed [McDavid's] game for sure,” said Darryl Sutter..Calgary forward Matthew Tkachuk won’t blame his netminder either.."I thought he was awesome tonight,” Tkatchuk said of Markstrom. “He made so many great saves and kept us in it in the first, and we didn't play that great in front of him in the second.".No, the Flames won’t throw their goalie under the bus; they just leave him out to dry. Just ask Rasmus Andersson.."We all know that we weren't good enough in front of him," the defenceman said. "What, three 2-on-1s for goals? We leave him out to dry. How many odd-man rushes did they have today, especially in the second period, and they capitalized. It just wasn't good enough and it cost us.".Oliver Kylington spoiled Smith’s shutout with 4:51 left in the third period. Thirty-six seconds later, Smith was hit from behind the net by former Oiler Milan Lucic, who received a 5-minute major penalty for charging and a game misconduct for his misdeeds. Mikko Koskinen faced no shots in relief..The Flames want to stop Connor McDavid in Game 4 in Edmonton Tuesday. The problem, Andersson says, is that no Flame can.."We let one guy dominate the game," Andersson said of McDavid. "We just have to stop him with all five guys that are on the ice, six including Marky. We have to stop him as a unit. One individual can't stop him. We just have to stop him together.".The Kings’ 4-0 Game 4 shutout of the Oilers is the only time McDavid hasn’t gotten two points in a game all playoffs. His six multi-point games in round one tied an NHL record. And his streak of six straight multi-point games is second best in Oiler history—behind Wayne Gretzky’s eight in 1983. .McDavid has 23 points these playoffs, and if he takes his team to the finals, he could surpass the NHL record 47 points the Great One got in 1985. And Kane’s 10 goals are more than halfway to the NHL record 19 scored by the Flyers’ Reggie Leach in 1976 and Oiler legend Jari Kurri in 1985..Kane’s second period flurry made him the third ever Oiler to score a natural hat trick in a playoff game, following Gretzky in 1983 and Petr Klima in 1991. Kane is the fourth Oiler to have multiple hat tricks in a post-season. Kurri had four hat tricks in 1985, Mark Messier had three in 1983, and Wayne Gretzky had two in 1981, 1983, and 1985.
