PREVIEW: Oilers at Ducks (Game 4)

The Edmonton Oilers look to even up their first-round series with the Anaheim Ducks in Game 4 at Honda Center on Sunday night.

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PREVIEW: Oilers at Ducks (Game 4)

ANAHEIM, CA – Gut check in Game 4.

The Edmonton Oilers will seek redemption against the Anaheim Ducks in Game 4 of their first-round series on Sunday at Honda Center, looking to use their experience in trailing positions to even the series after falling behind two games to one with a 7-4 loss on Friday.

“Our group is calm all the time and ready for each moment,” Darnell Nurse said following Saturday’s practice. “We've faced adversity and been able to overcome it. We've also found ways to play good hockey, too. So for us, it's a big game and an important game for us tomorrow, and we’ve got to be ready to answer the bell.”

It’s all-too-familiar territory for the Oilers, who find themselves trailing in a series after rallying from 2-0 down against LA in last year’s first round before rattling off four wins in a row in the Western Conference Final to overcome a Game 1 defeat to Dallas.

Edmonton overcame 2-1 and 3-2 deficits against the Canucks in the 2024 second round, before nearly completing the unthinkable in the Stanley Cup Final by forcing a Game 7 against the Panthers, which ended in heartbreak.

In another spot trailing in the series, this is where experience matters.

"No panic," sensed Jason Dickinson, who's new to the Oilers locker room this playoffs. "You go out and win the next game, that's all you've got to focus on.  Obviously, it's an important game, so that's on everybody's minds, but it's not something that can cloud your judgment or overwhelm you. You've got to be ready for the moment.

"With a group that has experienced it, the moment won't be too big for many of them.

In these playoffs, it's the Ducks' speed that's been the main culprit behind the Oilers falling behind, but their own mistakes have led to a much higher goals-against than they'd like, especially after scoring four goals a game and only winning once.

Adversity has never been far from this Oilers team, but they always seem to rise to the occasion when needed, confident that their experience in such situations can help them correct the mistakes from Friday’s Game 3 defeat in Orange County.

“It feels like when our backs are up against the wall, that’s when we kind of shine,” Evan Bouchard said. “It's not a recipe for success, but it’s good to know that we have that pushback and we can get back into games and series.”

“I think we just need to focus on what we did well these three games and clean up defensively, and I think we'll be fine,” Vasily Podkolzin said. “These guys have been there multiple times, and they know what to do. Obviously, tomorrow is a huge game for us.

The Oilers could get a boost from the return of Jason Dickinson for Game 4 after he was deemed a game-time decision by Head Coach Kris Knoblauch following his full participation in Saturday’s practice at the Honda Center.

Knoblauch said he hadn’t yet decided on a starting goalie for Game 4, with Tristan Jarry potentially getting an opportunity over Connor Ingram, who’s 1-2-0 with a 4.70 GAA and .849 save percentage after allowing six goals on 38 shots in Game 3 on Friday.

“Today in the NHL, very rarely do you have one goalie play all the games in the playoffs,” Knoblauch said. “20 years ago and before that, it was unheard of to be swapping goalies, but we got two good goalies that we feel confident that they can both play. Going into the playoffs, we felt that there was going to be a time when we're going to have to make a switch. So whether that's for game four or game five, whatever it is, we have confidence in both.”

The Oilers were guilty of too many turnovers and mistakes against the Ducks in Game 3, trying to make the perfect pass too often while feeding Anaheim’s fast-paced attack, which fueled the crowd inside Honda Center in their first playoff game in eight seasons.

Anaheim outshot the Oilers 20-7 in the first period, leading 2-1 after 20 minutes before taking advantage of a pair of Edmonton’s errors early in the final frame to score 38 seconds apart from Beckett Sennecke and Leo Carlsson and take the lead in Game 3.

In order to change their fortunes as they have in recent playoffs, the Oilers are going to have to play tighter with the puck and more defensively to keep the game from becoming end-to-end, which is how the Ducks have earned their advantage, along with going 4-for-8 on the power play and scoring shorthanded in this series.

"Let's dominate our net, win the hard areas at both ends, and we'll have success," Dickinson said. "On top of that, we gave up a couple of odd-man rushes in the last game. I think that obviously is going to end up hurting you in the long run.  You've got to try to minimize that so you're not on your heels and able to create more offence."