Do Vegas Golden Knights already have a 1-0 lead on Edmonton Oilers?
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Or make it 2-0 and start the series back in Edmonton, where they begin one of their patented comebacks?
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It's in the Oilers DNA to ease their way into a playoff series, starting slowly and finishing with a fury. Over the last 10 series dating back to the Western Conference Final run of 2022, they are just 2-8 in the opening game.
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But, in the eight series in which they fell behind 1-0, they are a respectable 5-3, losing only to the eventual Stanley Cup champions in 2022 (Colorado), 2023 (Vegas) and 2024 (Florida).
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Falling behind 3-0 to Florida cost them a Stanley Cup last year and falling behind 2-0 to Los Angeles this year left them one Quinton Byfield mental error from falling behind 3-1 and probably being eliminated in the first round.
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So, once again, the goal heading into Round 2 is to set the tone instead of digging a hole.
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'It's big,' said Leon Draisaitl. 'We can't find ourselves in a 2-0, or 3-0 hole again. And if you do you're going to try and climb your way our of it, of course, but it's big to start the series off well and find your game.'
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The Oilers have started pushing back against the trend, going 2-2 in the opening game last year after losing seven in a row dating back to the pandemic-era sweeps by Chicago and Winnipeg in 2020 and 2021.
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And this year's 0-2 deficit against Los Angeles, they say, can be written off to rust.
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'Last series was a little different just with the transition from the regular season to the playoffs,' said Evander Kane, who hadn't played in nearly a year when the puck dropped against Los Angeles.
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'No excuse, but a bit of a fact. We understand that getting down 2-0 isn't a recipe for success all the time, especially against a team like Vegas. It's important to go down there and get one, be ready for Game 1.'
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Because their usual path is too much unnecessary stress.
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'It's tough, when you get down 2-0, it can be mentally challenging,' said Kane. 'It's nice to put that behind us and get ready for Vegas.'
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Draisaitl sees this team gaining strength with every game, so he expects the Oilers will look much different Tuesday in Las Vegas than they did a couple of weeks ago when they limped into Los Angeles.
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'Especially the guys who haven't played in a while. We had a lot of guys in the first couple of games of the series who hadn't played in a long time. With every game, with every practice, with every day, those guys are going to get better and feel more comfortable and that's only to our advantage.'
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