{"id":288678,"date":"2026-04-27T21:28:27","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T21:28:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/288678\/"},"modified":"2026-04-27T21:28:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T21:28:27","slug":"oilers-on-verge-of-elimination-after-blowing-leads-to-ducks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/288678\/","title":{"rendered":"Oilers on verge of elimination after blowing leads to Ducks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Things started well for the visiting team<\/a>. Kasperi Kapanen opened the scoring 38 seconds into the game, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins added a power-play goal a few minutes later to give the Oilers an early 2-0 lead. It was a more controlled and direct opening than Edmonton had shown through the first three games, and for a stretch, it looked like they might finally be able to dictate the pace.<\/p>\n

That control didn\u2019t last.<\/p>\n

Anaheim worked its way back into the game in the second period, once again leaning on its power play. Cutter Gauthier and Mikael Granlund both scored with the man advantage to erase Edmonton\u2019s lead, continuing a trend that has defined much of this series. The Oilers generated enough offence to get out in front, but the same issues around penalties and defensive coverage allowed the Ducks to pull even without needing much sustained pressure.<\/p>\n

Edmonton responded again in the third. Evan Bouchard scored on the power play to restore the lead, giving the Oilers a second opportunity to close out the game. But, as has been the case throughout the series, they weren\u2019t able to hold it. Jeffrey Viel tied the game midway through the period, forcing overtime and leaving the outcome to another small sequence.<\/p>\n

Ryan Poehling ended it just over two minutes into the extra frame, finishing a play in tight following a face-off in Edmonton\u2019s zone to give Anaheim the win. The game-winning goal went to video review<\/a>, with the NHL\u2019s Situation Room concluding that the puck just crossed the line.<\/p>\n

The pattern across four games is clear. Edmonton has been able to create chances and score goals, but too often those stretches have been offset by penalties, loose puck management, and coverage breakdowns. Anaheim hasn\u2019t needed to control entire games to get results. The Ducks have capitalized on the openings they\u2019ve been given, particularly on special teams, and that has been enough to tilt the series in the young squad\u2019s favour.<\/p>\n

Now trailing 3-1, the situation is straightforward for the back-to-back Western Conference Champions. The Oilers know they can play with the Ducks, but they haven\u2019t been able to sustain the level required to close games<\/a>. With the series shifting back to Edmonton, there\u2019s no longer room to trade stretches or rely on short bursts of control. The margin that has existed through the first four games is gone, and the standard has to rise with it.What they said\u2026<\/p>\n

Edmonton head coach Kris Knoblauch on the team\u2019s mindset facing elimination\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of belief in that room. They\u2019ve been in some pretty poor situations, and this team never quits. They\u2019re resilient and have a lot of fight left. That\u2019s when we\u2019ve seen the best from them. But we don\u2019t have room for error anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt went into overtime, but we\u2019ve got to stay out of the penalty box. That certainly helps, and we just need to make a couple more defensive plays.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oilers captain Connor McDavid on the team\u2019s performance and being down in the series\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought we did a good job of putting ourselves in some pretty good spots, but we just didn\u2019t find a way to get it done. We\u2019re in a hole, no doubt about it. We\u2019ve got to find a way to get a win at home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, the PK goals hurt. They score two on the power play, and they tie it on a point shot that gets banged in. But there were some good signs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edmonton goaltender Tristan Jarry on the bounce that led to Anaheim\u2019s tying goal\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a battle in the corner and the puck gets thrown to the middle. It\u2019s just an unlucky bounce that goes off a skate, ends up between my legs, and kind of dies behind me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s tough. We were looking at it in there, and you can\u2019t really tell. You could probably go either way with it. There are going to be opinions, but being on the losing side of it, we didn\u2019t think it went in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Knoblauch on Jarry\u2019s performance in his first playoff start and the overtime goal\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cTristan played really well. Two of the goals, one went off our defenceman\u2019s stick and the other was an unfortunate bounce off a skate. He made some big saves, and that\u2019s what we wanted from him. It was a solid performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOn the overtime goal, it\u2019s a failed clear and they throw a puck to the net. Unfortunately, it goes off a defenceman\u2019s skate and in. It was very close, and I thought we might get away with it. I\u2019ve seen plays like that before where they can\u2019t prove it went in, but obviously they saw it differently.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anaheim head coach Joel Quenneville on the team being one win away from advancing\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re up 3-1 and every game has been a toss-up. We\u2019ve hung in there and found different ways, with different guys, against an excellent team. Now we\u2019re in a position where we can just focus on the next game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ducks forward Jeffrey Viel on his game-tying goal in the third period\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cIt starts with a good forecheck and a strong offensive-zone shift. Just putting pucks on net and getting to the front, and I was able to get rewarded.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anaheim forward Ryan Poehling on his overtime-winning goal in Game 4\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore the draw, I remembered my college coach saying that a 60 per cent of overtime winners come off face-offs. It\u2019s a big play to win that draw and bear down. I was trying to go back door to [Chris Kreider] and it ended up taking a lucky bounce off their defenceman\u2019s skate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Up next\u2026<\/p>\n

A Ducks win would end Edmonton\u2019s season and advance Anaheim to the second round. An Oilers win would extend the series and send it back to California for Game 6 on Thursday.<\/p>\n

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