The Edmonton Oilers are headed to the Western Conference Final after beating the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 in Game 7 of their 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs second round series, Monday (May 20) at Rogers Arena. Cody Ceci, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman scored for the Oilers, while Edmonton netminder Stuart Skinner stopped 15 shots in the victory.
Related: Oilers Defeat Canucks 3-2 in Game 7, Will Meet Stars in West Final
The Oilers were up 3-0 midway through the third period before two quick goals in a span of less than four minutes by Vancouver skaters Conor Garland and Filip Hronek cut Edmonton’s lead to one with 4:36 left and sent the crowd into a frenzy.
With momentum firmly on the side of the Canucks, who have earned a reputation for comebacks this postseason, many Edmonton fans at that point might have felt a sense of dread that the tying goal for Vancouver was only inevitable. But what followed is a testament to the growth of the Oilers, as they look to become a championship team.
Here’s how Edmonton rose to the occasion during those tense final minutes of Game 7, which might ultimately be looked back upon as a watershed in this era of Oilers hockey.
Knoblauch Takes Timeout
After Hronek one-timed the puck past Skinner at 15:24 to make the score 3-2, Edmonton’s first-year head coach Kris Knoblauch immediately signalled to the officials for a timeout. It was the latest example of savvy coaching by Knoblauch, who has made all the right moves recently.
With more than 19,000 fans waving towels and chanting “Go Canucks Go”, Knoblauch gathered his troops to get their bearings. The Oilers coach walked up and down the visitor’s bench, speaking to players with his characteristic calm.
During Oilers postgame coverage on 630 CHED radio, former NHL All-Star Rob Brown provided some insight into the impact of a timeout following Vancouver’s two quick strikes.
“I’ve been on the offensive side of it, where you’ve scored a couple of goals, and it’s almost a race back to centre (ice), because you want that puck to drop, because you know you’ve got them reeling,” said Brown. “You’re yelling at the ref to ‘hurry it up, we want to get going’, because you’ve got a team at that point is kind of like a deer in the headlights, just stunned.
“This game was completely in control, and then all of a sudden in a span of 3-4 minutes, it’s a one-goal game. We could hear on TV how crazy that place was, I can’t imagine it being in there,” Brown continued. “So as a player on the Canucks, you’re like, ‘let’s get going right now’, and Knoblauch slowed it down.
“All of a sudden, that energy that the Canucks had, it just dissipates a little bit, and now you get a fresh line out there, you’ve had a talking to (from the coach), you’ve settled back down, and the Oilers were very good after that …”
Nurse Rallies the Troops
Oilers alternate captain Darnell Nurse doesn’t have a reputation for being a vocal leader. In fact, fairly or not, the veteran defenceman really doesn’t have a reputation around his leadership, period. That’s not to say Nurse isn’t a good leader, it’s just that outside of the Oilers locker room, little is known about how he functions in that role.
So it’s probably fitting that fans didn’t get to see what happened during the game’s final TV timeout, when Nurse brought his team together. After the game, Oilers captain Connor McDavid singled out Nurse’s leadership in that moment.
“He’s a great leader, he’s big in this room, and he showed great leadership there, bringing everybody in,” McDavid said while speaking to the media.
Oilers Forwards Kill Clock
With just under four minutes remaining on the clock, McDavid brought the puck into the Canucks zone. After the teams battled for the puck behind the Vancouver net, Oilers winger Warren Foegele gained possession and held the puck for more than 15 seconds, moving along the half-wall in the corner, refusing to relinquish control even while being knocked to his knees by Hronek.
Eventually, the puck came free to McDavid, who cut towards the net, only to be poke-checked by Vancouver goalie Arturs Silovs. That’s when Hyman pounced on the puck, pinning it against the boards in the corner while three Canucks tried to poke it free.
Hyman’s efforts ran another 10 seconds off the clock, as Edmonton ultimately clocked close to 50 seconds of offensive zone time on an incredible pushback shift. Even when Vancouver finally regained possession, the Oilers’ forecheck forced the Canucks back into their zone, and it wouldn’t be until 2:45 remained that they were able to launch a rush.
Canucks Unable to Get One Last Shot
Trailing by a score of 3-2, all Vancouver needed was one shot to tie the game, and at the end, Edmonton made sure the Canucks didn’t get it.
After Hronek scored, Vancouver didn’t register a single shot on goal over the final 4:36, thanks in combination to the Oilers’ defensive play, puck possession, and willingness to sacrifice themselves for the team: Dylan Holloway blocked a point shot by Vancouver’s Nikita Zadorov with four minutes remaining, leading into Edmonton’s extended offensive possession, and Hyman got in the way of Hronek’s last-ditch blast in the dying seconds.
The Canucks finished Game 7 with only 17 shots on goal, continuing a series trend that saw Edmonton allow less than 20 shots in four of the last six contests.
Edmonton will now face the Dallas Stars in the best-of-seven conference final. Game 1 takes place at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Thursday (May 23).
