from Mark Spector of Sportsnet,

This was fun. Just not the kind of fun the Edmonton Oilers were hoping to have.

This was Space Mountain without a seatbelt, a New York cab ride with a blindfold on, a trip down the backside at Lake Louise on a toboggan, as the Oilers faced off in the Colorado zone with 90 seconds left, their goalie pulled in a 7-6 game.

It was great theatre — legendary! — that ended in an 8-6 Colorado victory. There, we’ve said it.

But here’s the stark reality, folks: When the game was in the balance, the Edmonton Oilers could not defend the Colorado Avalanche, they could not skate with the Colorado Avalanche, and they could not keep the puck out of their net against this Avalanche team that the Oilers caught up to only after the score effects set in.

The Oilers got their heinies kicked here, good and proper, on their first trip to a Western Conference Final since 2006.

But there is an alternate reality: Edmonton lost Game 1 against Los Angles and Calgary earlier this spring, and won both of those series. Of course, that means nothing on this stage.

continued