Ducks vs. Oilers preview: Game 1 hinges on Ryan Kesler, Connor McDavid matchup

Welcome to the new landscape of the Pacific Division, where mid-playoffs series set solely California are a thing of the past.

The Edmonton Oilers surprised again by ousting the San Jose Sharks in the first round over the weekend, setting up a Western Conference semifinal date with the Anaheim Ducks.

Anaheim is the more well-rested of the two after sweeping the Calgary Flames. The Ducks are also the most injured, particularly on their blue line. We’ll see how that affects the series.

At any rate, here’s a look the two teams heading into Game 1 on Wednesday night.

Goaltending makes a difference. These clubs met five times in the regular season, and the winning goalie of those games had to make at least 30 saves three times. Plus, three of those five games were decided by one goal and two ended in overtime. We know both teams can run, gun, and score in a flash. John Gibson and Cam Talbot will decide more than a couple of these playoff games.

The centers. It’ll start in the faceoff dot. The importance of winning faceoffs depends on who you ask and whether they prefer other advanced metrics. But it certainly plays some role, and the Ducks were beasts on the dot against Calgary: a robust 53.4 win percentage.

From there, it’ll be a game of line matchups. Ryan Kesler was OK against McDavid during the regular season, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins became a shutdown guy against the Sharks. Meanwhile, Ryan Getzlaf looks re-awakened as a scoring threat after a five-point, first-round series.

Offense and defending will start down the middle here.

Sami Vatanen (upper-body) is a game-time decision for the Ducks, as are Hampus Lindholm (undisclosed) and Cam Fowler (knee) — so half of Anaheim’s defense.

Oscar Klefbom missed practice with an illness, but he’s expected to join Edmonton’s blue line for Game 1.

Even-strength. Edmonton was one of the league’s most prolific offensive teams at even-strength this season with 166 goals (eighth in the NHL). Anaheim was a distant 17th, but the Ducks play at 5-on-5 against Calgary helped them advance. Only the Predators gave up less even-strength goals than the Ducks (2) in the first round, and only seven other teams scored more (9).

Containing McDavid’s speed will be key for Anaheim, and the Oilers must protect against turnovers vs. an intelligent Anaheim forward corps.

Anaheim hasn’t lost a regulation game since March 10, and another sweep of the Flames should have its home confidence at peak levels. The Oilers might give them a run for their money, but look for the Ducks to squeak past in Game 1.