Oilers ‘enjoy’ challenge of facing elimination ahead of Game 6 vs. Ducks

The Oilers are once again fighting for their lives against the Ducks in the first round of the playoffs. CTV News Edmonton's Evan Kenny reports.

They’ve been in this precarious position before. More than once.

Elimination games are nothing new for this version of the Edmonton Oilers, the Connor McDavid-led squad having come back to win elimination games – and, ultimately, series – on several occasions.

“We’ve been here many times,” forward Zach Hyman said after the Oilers’ morning skate on Thursday before Game 6 in Anaheim, Calif., against the Ducks, the hosts leading the series 3-2.

Most recently, there was the 2024 Stanley Cup Final, which saw Edmonton come back down three games to none to tie the championship set with the Florida Panthers only to lose by a goal in Game 7.

The second round that year saw the Vancouver Canucks take a stranglehold in a squeaker of a series through five games – six of the seven games were decided by one goal – only to see the Oilers win the final two to take it.

In 2022, the Oilers found themselves down three games to two in their first-round showdown with the Los Angeles Kings and won the final two to move on.

Hyman, who joined the Oilers in 2021-22, said the mindset of players faced with elimination is to take it one game at a time.

“You just reset,” the 33-year-old told reporters. “(In the) playoffs, usually, momentum doesn’t carry over. It’s just a new game.”

Hyman said experience is a factor in handling the pressure to win to keep their hopes of winning the series alive.

“We’ve played in big games before,” he said. “There’s a comfort to playing in those. You’ve got to play your best. Your season’s on the line. I think you’re better at it as you play more (of them).”

And though it might sound odd, defenceman Darnell Nurse, at least, says that because he’s felt the heat of elimination a few times now, he likes playing in games with the Oilers’ season on the line.

“I think the more exposure, experience, the more times you go through it, you just enjoy playing in them,” the 11-year veteran told media. “There’s a tension that you feel when you’re going through them the first few times, but in moments like this, our group seems to enjoy it. We just want to come out here, play and let the result take care of itself.”

Head coach Kris Knoblauch, who knows his players feel confident despite the high stakes of Thursday’s game, wants more of the same from them from Tuesday’s Game 5 win to extend the series: limiting the Ducks’ opportunities and staying out of the penalty box.

“They’re going to get opportunities whether those pucks go in the net or not,” Knoblauch said of the high-flying, offensively minded Ducks. “But if there’s a common theme (to losing), it’s taking penalties that are ... unnecessary and that they’ve taken advantage of (to get) back into games.”

Projected Oilers lineup

Forward

• Leon Draisaitl • Connor McDavid • Kasperi Kapanen
• Vasily Podkolzin • Ryan Nugent-Hopkins • Zach Hyman
• Matt Savoie • Jason Dickinson • Jack Roslovic
• Colton Dach • Josh Samanski • Curtis Lazar

Defence

• Mattias Ekholm • Evan Bouchard
• Darnell Nurse • Connor Murphy
• Jake Walman • Ty Emberson

Goal

• Connor Ingram • Tristan Jarry

Projected Ducks lineup

Forward

• Cutter Gauthier • Leo Carlsson • Troy Terry
• Alex Killorn • Mikael Granlund • Beckett Sennecke
• Chris Kreider • Ryan Poehling • Mason McTavish
• Jeffrey Viel • Tim Washe • Ian Moore

Defence

• Jackson LaCombe • Jacob Trouba
• Pavel Mintyukov • John Carlson
• Tyson Hinds • Drew Helleson

Goal

• Lukas Dostal • Ville Husso