PREVIEW: Oilers at Ducks (Game 6)

The Edmonton Oilers look to avoid elimination for a second straight game to force Game 7 against the Anaheim Ducks with a victory in Thursday's do-or-die Game 6 at Honda Center.

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PREVIEW: Oilers at Ducks (Game 6)

ANAHEIM, CA – Stayin’ alive, stayin’ alive.

The famed 1977 tune by the Bee Gees that serves as the win song for the Edmonton Oilers in the locker room after victories is taking on extra meaning as they try to extend their season for a second straight game on Thursday against the Anaheim Ducks to set up Saturday Night Fever in Oil Country this weekend by forcing Game 7 at Rogers Place.

"You've got to be grateful for just getting to the next day," Connor McDavid said. "All we did was survive one more day, and the pressure is still on us, but it's a big game for them, too. I'm sure they'll be feeling that.

"Closing out is tough, and I'm sure they won't want to come back to Edmonton, so the pressure's on them. But we've got to find a way to survive another day."

Just like it is when the song ends, the Oilers will need to move quickly to the next one, taking the rhythm they felt during Tuesday’s backs-against-the-wall victory into Thursday's challenge of doing it all over again – this time on the road – to keep their season alive in a do-or-die Game 6 back in Orange County.

“You always feel good after a win,” Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said before the team's flight to Anaheim on Wednesday. “That definitely changes after you lose, especially in overtime, where their heads are hanging and you feel pretty down.

"You win, and now you're thinking we only need two now instead of three. The task doesn't seem so difficult, and the mood immediately after the game was completely different. But the next day, it’s gone and you're already thinking about the next game.”

After avoiding elimination with a 4-1 victory in Game 5 on Tuesday, the Oilers are looking for the same effort that saw them respond with three goals in a 7:31 span to come out strong with a 3-0 lead in the opening 10 minutes of regulation.

Edmonton has scored first in each game of the series, but Anaheim's red-hot power play and their strong second periods have culminated in only two of those resulting in victories for the Blue & Orange, who held off the Ducks over the final two periods of Game 5 and equalled the Ducks' output on the man advantage to extend their season.

The Oilers broke it open 2:22 into the first period on Vasily Podkolzin’s second goal of the series, taking a terrific cross-ice pass from Evan Bouchard for one of his three assists on the night and beating Lukas Dostal on Edmonton’s first shot with a wicked top-shelf snipe over his shoulder from the left circle.

The Russian’s hard work before practices this season, often on the ice 30 minutes early to work on his game, has him playing as one of Edmonton’s best players so far in these playoffs, averaging a point per game (2G, 3A) and driving offence in Game 5 on a line with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Kasperi Kapanen.

“Just confidence,” Knoblauch said of Podkolzin. “He's obviously always working on his game, so he's getting better, and the play that he made the other night on the goal, that's a skill play. You don't make those plays unless you're on the ice working on your shot and craft.

“But I think the biggest transformation in his game is just feeling confident. He’s been able to make plays, and he hasn't gotten away from his identity.

Zach Hyman and Leon Draisaitl then scored 1:40 apart to chase Dostal from the Ducks' crease after allowing three goals on nine shots, with Draisaitl linking up with McDavid and Kapanen on a loaded top line that put the Oilers ahead 3-0 on the German's redirection that went five-hole with 9:47 left in the opening frame.

"Going into an elimination game where we had to change our fate, we ultimately felt that we were going to put the game in their hands and let them dictate how this game's going to go," Knoblauch said.

Draisaitl scored on the power play in the second period, just under two minutes after Alex Killorn got the Ducks on the board with their seventh PPG of the series.

With McDavid not quite at full health this playoffs, Draisaitl was able to carry the bulk of possession when they were together to relieve some of the burden on the captain, with the chemistry between Podkolzin, Nugent-Hopkins and Kapanen making it easier for the bench boss to make the decision to put 97 & 29 together with 42 at even strength.

"Absolutely, it takes a little bit of pressure off him," Knoblauch said. "He's got some pretty good support there with Leon being able to make plays, but also, Kapanen's been playing well too."

McDavid was deemed a game-time decision with Jason Dickinson before Game 5, but mentioned post-game that his status was never truly in doubt – like it won't be for Game 6 on Thursday despite Dickinson's status still being up in the air, says Knoblauch.