{"id":292560,"date":"2026-04-30T04:16:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T04:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/292560\/"},"modified":"2026-04-30T04:16:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T04:16:15","slug":"oilers-keep-series-alive-with-commanding-home-win-over-ducks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/292560\/","title":{"rendered":"Oilers keep series alive with commanding home win over Ducks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Facing elimination, Edmonton didn\u2019t leave much to chance early. Vasily Podkolzin opened the scoring<\/a> just over two minutes into the game, and Zach Hyman followed a few minutes later to make it 2-0. The Oilers stayed on the front foot from there, with Leon Draisaitl extending the lead to 3-0 midway through the first period. It was the type of start they had been searching for throughout the series, only this time it held.<\/p>\n

After multiple games in which early leads slipped away or momentum shifted quickly, the Oilers managed the game with structure and detail. They limited Anaheim\u2019s ability to sustain pressure and didn\u2019t allow the Ducks to dictate the pace as they had in previous outings.<\/p>\n

Anaheim\u2019s lone response came on the power play later in the second, but it didn\u2019t change the overall feel of the game. The Oilers stayed composed, kept their structure intact, and avoided the breakdowns that had worked against them earlier in the series.<\/p>\n

Draisaitl added his second of the night<\/a> on the power play not long after the Ducks scored, pushing the lead to 4-1. From there, the focus shifted from chasing the game to protecting it, something that had cost them through previous losses.After sitting out Game 4 in favour of Tristan Jarry, Connor Ingram turned aside 24 of 25 shots, providing a steady presence in net, while the group in front of him<\/a> did a better job of managing pucks and limiting second chances. The details were cleaner, and the result followed.<\/p>\n

The Oilers have talked throughout the series about belief and experience, and this was the first time it showed up across a full 60 minutes. They played within the margins that playoff hockey demands, stayed out of trouble for long stretches, and capitalized on their opportunities early.<\/p>\n

Now, the challenge shifts again.<\/p>\n

The Oilers have bought themselves another game, but the situation hasn\u2019t changed. They\u2019ll need to carry this level into Anaheim and find a way to repeat it in a much different environment against a team that still holds the edge in the series.<\/p>\n

What they said\u2026<\/p>\n

Oilers captain Connor McDavid on the challenge ahead in Game 6\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019ll take a big effort. A really big effort. We\u2019re still in a tough spot and we\u2019ve got to find a way to win in a tough building. I thought we were right there in Game 4 and we\u2019ll have another opportunity in Game 6.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to be grateful just to get to the next day. All we did is survive one more day. The pressure is still on us, but it\u2019s a big game for them too. Close-out games are tough in their building, and I\u2019m sure they won\u2019t want to come back to Edmonton.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s pressure on them, but we\u2019ve got to find a way to survive another day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edmonton defenceman Evan Bouchard on building off a strong start and playing with urgency\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a good start for us. We\u2019ve had a few good starts in this series, and it\u2019s about holding the lead. I thought we did a good job of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve probably heard it a lot, but when our backs are against the wall, we play good hockey. I thought we did that tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oilers forward Vasily Podkolzin on the team\u2019s confidence and response\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI like how we responded. We\u2019re a great team. We\u2019ve got veterans here who know how to play deep into the playoffs, and there\u2019s a lot of confidence in our room. Nothing\u2019s done yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI like our leadership group. They sent a great message after Game 4 that nothing\u2019s done yet. Only our group can come back from this. I like our mood right now, but tomorrow is a new day. We\u2019ll fly to Anaheim and be ready for Game 6.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edmonton goaltender Connor Ingram on staying prepared and stepping into Game 5\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen a game is that important, it\u2019s not that hard to stay locked in. I have little things I do to make sure I\u2019m engaged and aware of what\u2019s going on at all times. It\u2019s just experience and habits I\u2019ve picked up along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought Tristan Jarry was great the game before. The communication was really good. They let me know what the plan was, so I had no issues stepping in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was frustrated after Game 3 with myself, so getting a bit of a mental and physical reset helped. Jarry gave us a great chance, so it worked out well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville on the approach heading back home for Game 6\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not going to be easy. Nobody is going to give us anything. We\u2019ve got to be ready to push and be excited about going home and playing in front of our crowd.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anaheim forward Troy Terry on trying to finish off a contender like the Oilers\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ve been to two Stanley Cup Finals for a reason. They\u2019re a good team. We believe in this room, but we knew they were going to push.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe made some mental mistakes, but I didn\u2019t think we weren\u2019t ready. We got down early, and I thought we pressed the rest of the game. That\u2019s playoff hockey.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ducks forward Alex Killorn on Edmonton\u2019s experience and the opportunity in Game 6\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have a ton of experience. A lot of those guys have been to the Stanley Cup Final the last two years, and that matters. They\u2019ve been down in series before and never quit.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you told us we\u2019d be going home for Game 6 with a chance to win the series, we\u2019d take that. It\u2019s a great position for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Up next\u2026<\/p>\n

An Edmonton win would send the series back to Rogers Place for Game 7 on Saturday, while an Anaheim win would advance the Ducks to the second round.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Facing elimination, Edmonton didn\u2019t leave much to chance early. Vasily Podkolzin opened the scoring just over two minutes…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":292561,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[163,165,164],"class_list":["post-292560","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-anaheim","tag-anaheim","tag-anaheim-headlines","tag-anaheim-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/292560","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=292560"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/292560\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/292561"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=292560"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=292560"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=292560"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}