The Vancouver Canucks are in Edmonton this evening for what will be their biggest game of the season so far.
Up 3-2 in their second-round series against the Oilers, the Canucks can eliminate Edmonton and advance to the NHL’s final four with a win in Game 6 on Saturday evening.
Two nights ago, Vancouver jumped into the series lead with a last-minute goal in Game 5.
Puck drop for Game 6 is 5 p.m. PT.
Vancouver forward J.T. Miller is coming off a stellar performance in Game 5. He was largely tasked with shutting down the Connor McDavid line, but he also potted the game-winning goal with just 31 seconds left in regulation time.
Limiting McDavid’s production has been key to Vancouver’s success so far in the series.
The Oilers’ superstar didn’t have a point in Games 3 or 5, and he didn’t register a shot on net in Game 1 — the only time that’s happened across his 59 playoff appearances.
“Without being disrespectful, I thought the last couple games we were kind of giving Connor a little too much respect, playing not to get scored on a little bit, And when you do that, he just gets more time with the puck,” Miller said.
Carson Soucy and Phillip Di Giuseppe also scored for Vancouver in Game 5.
Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet has been preaching the term “resilience.”
“The message is it’s going to be really hard, and that’s all you should be thinking about. Whatever it takes to get it done, you got to do,” he told the media.
“It’s going to be our toughest game (and) that’s how you got to approach it.”
The Canucks have played nine consecutive games that have been decided by one goal. It is something Tocchet said the team has embraced all season.
“I think this year, we’ve had a lot of taste of it where we knew if we wanted to go far and be successful, we would have to be comfortable (in close games),” Tocchet said.
“It’s a lot of buy-in by the leadership of this team.”
For Canucks fans in the Lower Mainland, there are several watch parties in the region.
The biggest watch party will be once again at Rogers Arena, which is sold out for Game 6.
Other public watch parties include Delta, Port Coquitlam, Burnaby, North Vancouver, Langley and Maple Ridge, among others.
The Oilers are more than aware that their season is on the line Saturday night, with Edmonton star forward Leon Draisaitl saying is locked in for Game 6.
“You just have to take it one game at a time,” he said on Friday. “We’ve got to go home and win one game at home. That’s all we have to do.”
The Oilers have teetered on the brink of elimination before.
Last season, the club fell behind the Golden Knights 3-2 before returning to Edmonton for Game 6. Las Vegas wrapped up the series with a 5-2 victory and went on to win the Stanley Cup.
“We didn’t win last year’s Game 6. We’ll learn from that, I guess,” Oilers captain Connor McDavid said following Thursday’s loss. “You’ve got to be ready to go.”
Edmonton has confirmed Stuart Skinner will be between the pipes for Game 6, while Vancouver will be once again relying on Arturs Silovs, who has been stellar since taking over the net.
— With files from the Canadian Press