The Ducks have another crack at eliminating the defending Western Conference champions in Game 6, this time on home ice.
The Oilers, unsurprisingly, came out hard in Game 5 in front of their home crowd. They blitzed the Ducks for three goals in the first 11 minutes of the game, ending goaltender Lukáš Dostál’s night.
“We’re all in it together,” Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville said. “I think everybody should absorb some responsibility. It’s a different group almost every night who's out there. Just be comfortable being out there and want to be out there. Initiate more than just respond to what's going on in the game.”
“We’ve got to come out better,” Ducks defenseman John Carlson said. “They played more desperate than us in that stretch of time, and we’ve got to learn from it. We’re back home now and I think we can learn and use that to our advantage.”
Apr 28, 2026; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers forward Jason Dickenson (16) and Anaheim Ducks defensemen John Carlson (74) looks for a loose puck during the third period in game five of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images“We knew they were going to come out with a big push,” Ducks forward Cutter Gauthier said. “Their season was on the line and they're going to have that desperation that we knew going into it. It was a slow start from our group, but I'm confident that we know what to expect going into tonight’s game.”
Gauthier said that the reaction in the locker room after Game 5 has been to have a short memory. They don’t want to let anything from that game linger and affect them moving forward. Having a better start in Game 6 is a priority.
“It's one of the things we've been trying to focus on all season long,” Gauthier said. “Trying to get off to a great 10 minutes at the start of the first to try to get that first goal and take that momentum going into the rest of the game. It seems like we haven't figured out that, but we’ve got time to.”
Apr 28, 2026; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; The Anaheim Ducks celebrate after a goal scored by forward Alex Killorn (17) during the second period against the Edmonton Oilers in game five of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images“You’re not going to be as aggressive five seconds into the game as you are down two goals in the third period,” Carlson said. “But I think from a mentality standpoint, for sure, you can play on your toes a lot more, be a lot more aggressive in certain areas without selling out. The players are too good now, you can't really even sell out in the third period as much without giving up two-on-one’s. any time there's a little bobble of the puck.
“But I think you can take some thoughts, some tactics from when we are down and try to apply them right away and hopefully give a little extra added boost. But again, it's momentum of games, there's so much going on. That’s why we’ve got to control what we can control, and that's to come out and have a good start.”
“I think we can learn from the last game, knowing that you get an opportunity,” Quenneville. “But (the Oilers) came and showed they're ready to play. And I think that the last two starts, we’ve got to be way better, expect it to be a hard, hard push by them. But (also), welcome that challenge and it's going to be fun to play a game that all game long, you’re going to get pushed and challenged. You can control your destiny by doing things the right way and try to move on, it'll be a good test for everyone. They got a little bit of exposure going to a game and see how that feels like when you’ve got a chance to win.”
Ducks Projected Lines
Troy Terry - Leo Carlsson - Cutter Gauthier
Alex Killorn - Mikael Granlund - Beckett Sennecke
Chris Kreider - Ryan Poehling - Mason McTavish
Jeff Viel - Tim Washe - Ian Moore
Jackson LaCombe - Jacob Trouba
Pavel Mintyukov - John Carlson
Tyson Hinds - Drew Helleson
Lukáš Dostál (confirmed)
Oilers Projected Lines
Connor McDavid - Leon Draisaitl - Kasperi Kapanen
Vasily Podkolzin - Ryan Nugent-Hopkins - Zach Hyman
Matt Savoie - Jason Dickinson - Jack Roslovic
Colton Dach - Josh Samanski - Curtis Lazar
Mattias Ekholm - Evan Bouchard
Darnell Nurse - Connor Murphy
Jake Walman - Ty Emberson
Connor Ingram (projected)