With a 6-4 Game 2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks in a game that looked like it had all the makings of another come-from-behind win, we’re back on the fun, exciting, emotional rollercoaster that is Edmonton Oilers playoff hockey.

Game 2 brought some feel-good highs and some pretty big lows, so with that, we break down the good, the bad, and the ugly from the Oilers’ last game.

The Good: Josh Samanski

If you’ve followed my writing, I’ve been a big supporter of Josh Samanski over the last month and, most recently indicated that he definitely should’ve been in the lineup for Game 1 on opening night.

Since playing in the Olympics, I’ve been impressed with Samanski’s steady upward trajectory, and while he’s been able to handle his business defensively, one thing I’ve been mentioning is seeing subtle offensive moves in his play that hinted the offence was going to come for him, and boy did it ever in Game 2.

The 24-year-old scored his first-ever playoff goal, off a rocket of a shot to briefly tie the game for the hometown team, and perhaps the only thing better than the goal itself was his fired-up celly.

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JOSH SAMANSKI SCORES HIS FIRST PLAYOFF GOAL IN HIS FIRST PLAYOFF GAME TO TIE GAME 2 LATE IN THE THIRD! 📹: Sportsnet

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On top of that, according to Natural Stat Trick, he led the team in several categories at five-on-five, including:

-62.56 CF% (Corsi For percentage)
-80.00 xGF% (expected goals for percentage)
-75% SCF% (scoring chances for percentage)
-100% high-danger chances for percentage

It was quite the NHL playoff debut for the Erding, Germany native, whose confidence should be at an all-time high.

The Good: Oilers’ five-on-five scoring

Another positive from Game 2 was the Oilers’ play at five-on-five, where they outshot the Ducks in every period and scored four goals from Leon Draisaitl, Connor Murphy, Zach Hyman, and, of course, Samanski.

On that note, after the game, when Connor McDavid was talking about his team’s play at five-on-five, he mentioned, “I feel we’ve done lots of good things,” and added, “When we play fast, we’re tough to handle.”

The Oilers have been labelled “power play merchants,” with a big reliance on their man advantage to put pucks in the net in........

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