The Edmonton Oilers had the chance to eliminate the Dallas Stars in Game 5 of the Western Conference Final for the second season, and while it wasn’t always perfect, our boys got the job done at the American Airlines Center with a big 6-3 win. And just like that, we have a Stanley Cup rematch against the Florida Panthers. Bring it on.

When the lights are at their brightest, you need your best players to step up and seize the moment. Connor McDavid did precisely that with a goal and an assist in Game 5 to put his team through to the Stanley Cup Final. After a stretch where it looked like the Dallas Stars were on the verge of erasing the Oilers’ three-goal lead, McDavid stepped up with a game-breaking goal to snap the Stars’ momentum and ultimately lock up the series-clinching win. It was the kind of backbreaking goal that only Connor McDavid can score because he flew in on Casey DeSmith at 2000 mph, and it almost didn’t matter that Roope Hintz was waterskiing off him for the final 15 feet. McDavid was going to score that goal no matter what.

Watching his game evolve as the playoffs roll along has been a true pleasure. McDavid’s offence is always going to be there. Still, he’s putting more focus on what happens in his backyard this year, knowing that strong defence will generate opportunities the other way. As it turns out, his goal came as a result of a lucky bounce off a massive block from Mattias Ekholm that somehow ended up in a breakaway for No. 97 that he finished off with a beautiful deke from his backhand to forehand. It was the kind of highlight reel goal that only McDavid can score because he’s the only player on earth whose hands can keep when he’s travelling at warp speed. But I think those opportunities are coming because he’s taking care of the defensive side of the puck first. He’s still leading the playoffs in points, which is no surprise, but it’s how well he supports his team in the defensive zone that really stands out.

Jeff Skinner played 1078 NHL games before getting his first chance to play in the postseason. Then, when he finally got his chance after years of slogging through seasons on bad teams, a dash three performance in Game 1 against the Kings led to him sitting for the next fourteen games. Kris Knoblauch wanted to bring Evander Kane in, and Skinner was the guy who got scratched. Yet, by all accounts, Skinner has had a fantastic attitude about the situation, knowing that being on a playoff team with Stanley Cup aspirations required execution at the highest level. Instead of sulking about being scratched, Skinner was waiting for the moment when he would finally get the call, and that happened for him in an elimination game after Zach Hyman was injured in Game 4.

Put on a line with Adam Henrique and Trent Frederic, Skinner wasn’t going to play a ton, but he was going to get enough opportunities that he should be able to get a few looks. As we soon learned, it wouldn’t take long for Skinner to make his mark. The Oilers started the game like a house on fire, and Skinner was the third to score in the opening half of the first period. Not only was his first playoff goal a big one, but I liked seeing him getting to the crease looking for the garbage that he eventually slid through Jake Oettinger’s legs. Playoff goals are often ugly, and I give Skinner plenty of credit for finding a way to contribute in his first game back, showing his coach that it’s no hindrance to have him on the ice. In the end, Skinner played 12:37 and produced three shots, three hits, and a +1 rating. Not too bad for a guy who hasn’t played in weeks.

Like everyone reading this, I was fascinated to see how Mattias Ekholm would look in his first game since playing 1:52 against the Sharks back on April 11th when he tried to see if he was healthy enough to play. Obviously, things didn’t go the Viking’s way, as he played only a few shifts before being forced to miss the next month and a half. So, to hear that he was going to play in Game 5 in favour of Troy Stecher was undoubtedly a massive call for his coach to make. While there’s no doubt Ekholm is the better player, how would he fare in his return against a team that would be playing with all kinds of urgency?

While he played the fewest minutes (15:52) of any defencemen, Ekholm looked pretty damned steady for a guy who missed the first 15 games of the playoffs. We knew he probably wouldn’t play a whole bunch, but we needed him to be effective when he did get out there, and I thought he did a solid job of making that happen. There were a few moments where he bobbled the puck or maybe didn’t hit his target with a pass the way he intended, and there was the penalty that resulted in Roope Hintz’s goal, but that’s mostly nitpicking what was an otherwise solid night for the 35-year-old d-man. The good news is that he will improve from here, and that could be a significant boost for this team as they look to avenge last year’s loss in the final.

1. BACK TO THE STANLEY CUP FINAL, BABY!

2. How good has John Klingberg been since getting back in the lineup? We all knew that he could move the puck, but the question was always whether his surgically repaired hips would get him up and down the ice as quickly as he needed. And while there are still moments when forwards can get a step on him, Klingberg is so damned smart that he usually finds a way to make it work with a quality play that gets the job done anyway.

3. Having a healthy Evander Kane is such a massive difference, and knowing he’ll be able to play in the final at a higher level than last year could be a big factor in whatever happens next. The guy has scored some huge goals throughout this run, and having that secondary scoring available this year when we didn’t have it last year is exciting to think about.

4. Corey Perry. That’s it. That’s all I want to say. I hate the guy for almost 20 years before he landed in Edmonton, and it’s so much more fun to see him score big goals for the Oilers instead of having them go against us. Perry’s great year just keeps getting better.

5. Stuart Skinner didn’t have a perfect night in net, but he did enough to lock in the win. More importantly, he outshone Jake Oettinger in four of five games when everyone kept saying how big of an advantage in goal that Dallas had over Edmonton. He can and is better than a .824 save percentage, but I also think he made some massive saves in the third period that were key in grinding out that win.

6. Anyone else love that Mattias Janmark has more goals in the playoffs that he had all season? I do. I love it. Playoff Janmark is a different animal, and it’s fun watching him crank it up when the games matter most.

7. Does anyone else feel for Cody Ceci? The guy loved being an Oiler, and then he had to watch his friends go on to have fun without him. That’s tough. I mean, I thank him for allowing all those goals against, but that can’t be fun from his perspective.

8. For the first time in this series, I am thrilled to report that the Oilers won 54.9% of the faceoffs. Great success.

9. Boys touched the Clarence S. Campbell Trophy. Didn’t do it last year. We shall see.

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