PROJECTED LINEUP: Oilers at Ducks (Game 6)

ANAHEIM, CA – Jason Dickinson remains a game-time decision for the Edmonton Oilers as they look to avoid elimination against the Anaheim Ducks for the second game in a row on Thursday in Game 6 at Honda Center and extend their first-round series to a deciding Game 7 in Oil Country on Saturday.

“Just reset,” Zach Hyman said. “It’s the playoffs, and usually momentum doesn't carry over.  It's just a new game, and we have to find a way to win one on the road.  You don't win a series unless you win a game on the road, so we have to win tonight."

Neither McDavid nor Dickinson was on the ice for the Oilers during Thursday’s morning skate, where Trent Frederic was holding the place of the captain on the top line and likely remains out of the lineup tonight as the extra forward for the Blue & Orange.

Head Coach Kris Knoblauch referred to Dickinson as the only late decision to be made by the Oilers tonight during his morning media availability, with McDavid expected to be good to go following his two assists in Tuesday’s 4-1 victory in Game 5 that booked their trip back to Orange County.

The Oilers' lineup is expected to be unchanged from the first-period alterations made by Coach Knoblauch in Game 6 as they look to latch onto that momentum and their experience in these elimination situations, having overturned multiple times in previous series on their way to two straight Stanley Cup Finals in 2024 & 2025.

McDavid should slot back into the top-line setup with Draisaitl and Kapanen, while the secondary trio of Podkolzin, Nugent-Hopkins and Hyman should remain together after they experienced great success in Tuesday's elimination victory by all picking up points.

“Our group's really confident in that we're able to come out and play a strong game, Darnell Nurse said. “The other teams have a say in it, too.  They're going to come out and play strong and throw everything at us, so today's going to be a hard night for us, but we just have to worry about winning one game.”

Having been in this position before, the Oilers are a veteran-enough team to know that it's all about focusing on winning one game at a time to keep their season alive, rather than letting the emotions become overwhelming and leak into their game.

"I don't know if you necessarily lean on it," Hyman said of the team's experience. "It's a different feeling when you've played your first NHL game compared to when you play your 500th NHL game. It's just a mentality and a mindset, and for us, there's nothing unexpected. 

"A lot of us played in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. We've played in big games before, so there's a comfort to playing in those. You gotta play your best when your season's on the line, and I think you're better at it the more you play."

Tonight's projected lines and defence pairings will be confirmed during warmups.

View the Oilers Projected Lineup for Game 6 vs. the Ducks below:

 McDavid - Draisaitl - Kapanen
Podkolzin - Nugent-Hopkins - Hyman
Savoie - Dickinson - Roslovic
Dach - Samanski - Lazar

Ekholm - Bouchard
Walman - Murphy
Nurse - Emberson

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