For the second year in a row, the Edmonton Oilers are going to be facing the Los Angeles Kings in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Last year, the Oilers came out of a very tight series and ended up going all the way to the Western Conference Finals before being defeated by the Colorado Avalanche.
This year, both teams are hoping to come out of this series so that they can win a wide-open West in the series matchups that will follow.
This is a series that will feature all sorts of skills, which will make it an incredibly entertaining series for people to watch. These are the five things that everyone should be watching for in this series between these two great Pacific Division teams:
1. Another playoff series with Kopitar and Doughty
The Edmonton Oilers will have to defend against some Los Angeles Kings stars.
For a long time, Drew Doughty and Anze Kopitar have dominated the National Hockey League. These two have been a big part of a great core with Los Angeles for over a decade now and have had tons of success that include two Stanley Cup championships.
Kopitar is the two-way centerman that is amongst the best year in and year out. He is right behind guys like Patrice Bergeron and Jonathan Toews as the best in that role over the last decade or more.
Doughty is a defenseman that was one of the best in the league for a long time. He might not be the guy he was a few years ago, but he is still an incredibly impactful player. The same can be said about Kopitar as well.
We are so lucky to be watching these guys in the playoffs again. If the Kings are going to have a chance in this series, these two are going to have to be at their best both offensively and defensively, as we know what Edmonton is about to throw at them.