Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner (74) makes a save against the Vegas Golden Knights during the third period of Game 5 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series Wednesday, May 14, 2025, in Las Vegas. Photo by John Locher /AP
In the movie Slap Shot, Charlestown Chiefs coach Reggie Dunlop famously paid an ambulance driver to circle the arena and hype the impending violence.
The Edmonton Oilers could have something similar before Game 5 on Wednesday, only with a hearse.
After how Edmonton dominated Game 4 Monday, and with the Oilers’ well-earned reputation for finishing teams off in elimination games, you knew there was a pretty good chance the Vegas Golden Knights would be on a cold, hard slab by the end of the night.
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It took a while; time of death was listed officially as 7:19 of overtime, but Kasperi Kapanen finally buried the game-winner in a 1-0 victory that clinches the series and advances Edmonton to its third Western Conference championship in four years.
“There’s probably a lot of people who thought it was going to go longer than five and probably not a lot of people who thought we would win,” said Oilers captain Connor McDavid. “It’s nice to keep on rolling, keep on proving people wrong.
“We have a lot of belief in this room, it’s fun to be a part of.”
Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner, who faced the wrath of many haters this year, destroyed his critics, posting his second shutout in a row since returning to the net in Game 4.
“I don’t think I want to do it like this too often, but it happens,” he said. “It’s the nature of the game, it’s the nature of the position. But being able to come back in no matter what the scenario is and having the resilience in me is something I can be proud of.
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“And the way that they played in front of me is massive. So much has to do with how the guys are playing in front of me. The way that they’ve played since I’ve come back in is impressive.”
The Oilers are now 8-1 over the last four post-seasons when they have a chance to close out a series. The only time they didn’t put a team away was in Game 7 of last year’s Stanley Cup Final against Florida. They’re also 8-1 in their last nine playoff games after losing the first two against Los Angeles.
“You could just tell as these two series went on that there was more and more cohesion coming within our group,” said Darnell Nurse. “That said, this is not the end, we need to continue to grow our game and be better because we have high goals for ourselves.”
While the first period of Game 4 was back-and-forth, high-intensity chaos, Game 5 was a careful, low-event chess match. That’s pretty much what you’d expect from a team that specializes in putting opponents out of their misery and a former Stanley Cup champion that wasn’t going down easy.
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Scoreless in the first period.
Scoreless in the second period.
Scoreless in the third period.
If anyone wanted an inch of ice, they had to fight for it.
The game, and maybe the series, was going to come down to one big play. Or one big mistake. Or one lucky bounce.
In the end, it was a fittingly greasy goal that did it, with Kapanen jamming home the winner in a wild goalmouth scramble.
“To be honest, it doesn’t really matter who scores, as long as somebody does,” said Kapanen, who sat out the first nine games of the playoffs before returning in Game 4. “The goal is important, yes, but without Stu, and the guys putting their bodies on the line and making the sacrifices, we wouldn’t be here.”
Now it’s back to the conference final.
“I’m excited,” said McDavid. “We keep putting ourselves in good positions, keep giving ourselves a chance. We keep knocking at the door. That’s all you can do, keep giving yourself a chance.”
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