Woodcroft would talk about teams emotions and keeping it in check, in the regular season you play different teams almost every night, to use it as a dress rehearsal to be ready for the playoffs.
I think this year will be tougher for the Oilers as teams now know what to expect from the Oilers and the dynamic offense they have from Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Evander Kane and Zach Hyman. But the Oilers are better in goal this year which was their downfall last year meaning this could be the most dangerous Oilers playoff team since they last won the Stanley Cup.