![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/404b12850e1d91d9c41106092805526ea8924e3ffe84cb4b6f17ca5b23411b02-300x200.jpg\")
Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid wipes his visor as members of the Anaheim Ducks celebrate after they were defeated in Game 6 in the first round of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs series Thursday, April 30, 2026, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo\/Mark J. Terrill)ANAHEIM \u2014 The Edmonton Oilers, exiting the playoffs early this season after two marathon runs to the Stanley Cup final, were a dented and depleted team.\nThe Oilers wilted under the fast and hungry Anaheim Ducks in a 5-2 loss in Thursday\u2019s Game 6 that ended Edmonton\u2019s season in the first round.
\nEdmonton was outclassed and outworked by a Ducks team that won its first playoff series since 2017, which happened to be over the Oilers as well.
\nThe 2026 edition of the Ducks included a dozen players under the age of 25, and 14 who made their NHL playoff debuts in the series.
\nThe Oilers fell to the Florida Panthers in each of the last two Cup finals in series that lasted seven and six games, respectively.
\nSome Oilers hinted at the beginning of this year\u2019s playoffs that the regular season felt like a chore at times, and that they were relieved to start the post-season again with a view to finishing the job and hoisting the Cup.
\nBut they didn\u2019t get close.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ve been searching for consistency all year and we didn\u2019t find it here in the playoffs,\u201d said captain Connor McDavid.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s tough. We were an average team all year. An average team with high expectations, you\u2019re going to be disappointed.\u201d
\nMcDavid\u2019s ankle, Leon Draisaitl\u2019s knee, Jason Dickinson\u2019s lower-body injury, and penalty-kill specialist Adam Henrique\u2019s undisclosed series-ending injury in Game 1 weakened Edmonton up the middle.
\nMcDavid, who led the NHL in post-season points three of the last four seasons, was hampered by a rolled ankle in the second period of Game 2. Draisaitl missed the last 14 games of the regular season with a knee injury.
\nMcDavid and Draisaitl spent the last two games of the series as linemates instead of centring separate lines. They battled, but weren\u2019t able to will their team into a higher gear Thursday.
\n\u201cToo hurt too soon,\u201d McDavid said. \u201cThe first round is always tough. It\u2019s always chaotic. It\u2019s tough to play through things so early on, as many guys did in here.
\n\u201cCredit to our staff for making guys available and making sure they were as comfortable as possible. That being said it\u2019s not an excuse either. We expected to have a longer run than we did.\u201d
\nDraisaitl had three goals and seven assists in six games. McDavid, who was held off the scoresheet with the first two games of the series, finished with a goal and five assists.
\nDefence was Edmonton\u2019s downfall in allowing 26 goals in six games. The penalty kill gave up eight goals on Anaheim\u2019s 15 chances.
\nEdmonton\u2019s power play started 0-for-6 in the first two games before finishing 4-for-14.
\n\u201cWe struggled on the PK all year too. We\u2019ve been searching for consistency there too,\u201d McDavid said. \u201cThe power-play could have been better to start the series.\u201d
\nEdmonton\u2019s offence compensated for a bottom-tier ranking in the NHL in allowed goals-against in the regular season. A leaky defence was magnified in the playoffs.
\nEdmonton scored the first goal in the first five games, yet won just two of them.
\n\u201cPretty much the story for most of the year. We just didn\u2019t defend well enough,\u201d said head coach Kris Knoblauch.
\n\u201cYou usually win or lose on your defensive play. It wasn\u2019t good enough.\u201d
\nThe Ducks had puck luck early on a deflection off a body and off a stick on two of their first three goals Thursday.
\nEdmonton failed to exploit Anaheim goalie Lukas Dostal fighting the puck and giving up rebounds in the first period when the Oilers had nine shots that missed the net.
\nDown 3-1 after the first period, the Oilers had time to work their way back into the game. The Ducks gave no quarter, however. They turned a neutral-zone turnover by Evan Bouchard into an odd-man rush and a 4-1 lead before the end of the second period.
\n\u201cAs much as it hurts, I think they\u2019re just a better team,\u201d Draisaitl said.
\nHow much wear and tear of two long seasons factored into Edmonton\u2019s earliest playoff exit in five years, there was little tolerance for that theory post-game.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s not an excuse,\u201d said forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. \u201cWe just didn\u2019t get the job done.\u201d
\nThis report by The Canadian Press was first published May 1, 2026.<\/p>\n