from Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal,

The Oilers have had no effective way of slowing Getzlaf down and Ducks coach Randy Carlyle has decided to have Getzlaf and fellow centre Ryan Kesler out at the same time as the game wears on. If Connor McDavid comes on for the Oilers, then Getzlaf goes off; if Ryan Nugent-Hopkins comes on, McDavid’s shadow then goes off. Now, you have to win the face-offs to make that work if you’re the Ducks, and they have been about two-thirds of the time. You win the draw and one of those Ducks centres gets to the bench, and doesn’t have to defend.

So, what do the Oilers do for Game 5?

Have they thought of moving McDavid’s bigger right-winger, Leon Draisaitl, back to the middle on another line to go specifically against the six-foot-four Getzlaf, because the 222-pound centre who played 26 minutes Wednesday is wearing down whatever other Oilers player he’s going against?

“Yup,” said Oiler coach Todd McLellan, refusing to be more expansive on a Draisaitl switch, which would then leave a cavernous hole on the right side of McDavid on the No. 1 line.

Could that happen in Anaheim, even if Draisaitl had a disastrous night (2-10) on face-offs in Game 4, like when former Oilers coach Glen Sather realized he had to put left-winger Mark Messier against Bryan Trottier in the New York Islanders-Oilers battles of old?

“Potentially,” said McLellan.

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