Changing lines on the fly is one of hockey’s most basic skills. It’s one the Edmonton Oilers feel they neglected in their Game 1 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks Wednesday night.
READ MORE: San Jose Sharks beat Edmonton Oilers 3-2 in OT in NHL playoffs
After practising on Thursday, the Oilers were lamenting shifts that went on far too long.
“We watched a couple of video clips where they made three changes before we even made one,” winger Zack Kassian said.
“Those things are all fixable in our game. No doubt we’ll learn from them and be better in Game 2.”
READ MORE: Edmonton Oilers look for answers after Game 1 loss to San Jose
It didn’t help that the Oilers were shorthanded six times on Wednesday, upsetting the usual flow of the lines.
“Guys were sitting on the bench for a while and then you get out there, you feel like you have to stay and do more,” centre Mark Letestu said.
“There were good intentions to it. There was nothing negligent or lazy about it. It was just a little bit of a lesson. We’re going to learn them along the way. That’s just one so far.”
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Defenceman Adam Larsson was the only Oiler not to practice, but he is expected to play on Friday.
Catch Game 2 on 630 CHED with the Face-off Show at 6 p.m. The game starts at 8:30 p.m.
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