The second round goals for Pavelski and Draisaitl were not enough

Over the last two nights in Stanley Cup Playoff action, we have seen something extraordinarily unordinary. On Tuesday night, Dallas Stars center Joe Pavelski scored four times in one game. Then on Wednesday night, Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl of Cologne, Germany scored four more times in a single postseason contest.

However the individual performances for Pavelski and Draisaitl were not enough. The Stars lost 5-4 in overtime to the Seattle Kraken in game one of their Western Conference second round series at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. Then the Oilers lost 6-4 to the Vegas Golden Knights in game one of their Western Conference second round series at T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada.

Only three other times in NHL Playoff history

Pavelski and Draisaitl become only the fourth and fifth players in NHL Playoff history to score four goals in a Stanley Cup postseason game and lose according to quanthockey.com. The only other three players to hold the distinction were Toronto Maple Leafs right winger Lanny McDonald of Hanna, Alberta, Chicago Blackhawks center Denis Savard of Pointe Gatineau, Quebec, and New York Islanders center Ray Ferraro of Trail, British Columbia. On April 17, 1977, McDonald had four goals and one assist for five points in a 6-5 Maple Leafs loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. On April 10, 1986, Savard had four goals in a 6-4 Blackhawks loss to the Maple Leafs. Then on April 26, 1993, Ferraro had four goals in a 6-4 Islanders loss to the Capitals.

NHL’s Youngest Teams looking strong

The four goal performances by Draisaitl and Pavelski in losses cannot be overlooked by the strong play in the postseason of the Kraken and Golden Knights. With balanced scoring by Seattle, and disciplined play by Vegas, we could actually see the Kraken and Golden Knights play against each other in the Western Conference Final for the right to play for the Stanley Cup.