Rivalry renewed: Alberta spring signals another Oilers-Kings playoff showdown

There are a few sure signs of spring in Alberta. The snow turns to slush, the Canada geese return to the ponds, lakes and streams, and the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings face each other in the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs.

The two rivals will meet in the first round for the third season in a row, with the Oilers looking to make it a hat trick of victories.

The Oilers rebounded from a 3-2 series deficit to win a seven-game thriller two seasons ago. In 2023, the Oilers beat the Kings in six.

"It could only be you," the Kings social media team posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, just minutes after Los Angeles beat Chicago 5-4 in overtime Thursday night, clinching third spot in the Pacific on the final day of the season.

The victory saw the Kings leapfrog the Vegas Golden Knights for third in the Pacific Division, and the right to play the second-place Oilers in Round 1.

The series starts at Edmonton's Rogers Place, with Game 1 scheduled for Monday.

"There's definitely been a lot of lessons learned," said Kings forward Quinton Byfield.

"We had a younger group coming in a couple of years ago. For myself, I got more playoff experience. A lot of guys in [our] room got more playoff experience. We know they're a really good team, they have some star players. It's going to be a really hard series, but hopefully it's our time, now."

While the foes are familiar with each other, the two head coaches are not. Both the Kings and Oilers made coaching changes this season, predicated by long slumps. For the Oilers, Jay Woodcroft was ousted after the team got off to a shocking 3-9-1 start.

The Oilers then went a blistering 46-18-5 under rookie head coach Kris Knoblauch, including a midseason 16-game winning