Oilers game-by-game recap on way to Cup Final

The Edmonton Oilers will play for the Stanley Cup for the first time since 2006.

The Oilers entered the postseason as the No. 2 seed from the Pacific Division and defeated the Los Angeles Kings in five games in the first round and the Vancouver Canucks in seven games in the second round before defeating the Dallas Stars in six games to advance to the Cup Final.

Edmonton has won the Stanley Cup five times, most recently in 1990, the last of five titles in a seven-year span.

Here is a look at the Oilers' road to the Stanley Cup Final:

April 22: Game 1, Western Conference First Round, Rogers Place: Oilers 7, Kings 4

Playing against the Kings in the first round for the third straight season, the Oilers stars showed up, with Connor McDavid's five assists and Zach Hyman's hat trick. Edmonton had a 4-0 lead midway through the second period before Los Angeles cut it to 4-2 at 17:56. Power-play goals by Leon Draisaitl and Hyman put the Oilers back up by two and they held on for the win. Stuart Skinner made 33 saves to give Edmonton a 1-0 series lead.

April 24: Game 2, Western Conference First Round, Rogers Place: Kings 5, Oilers 4, OT

The Oilers trailed early after Adrian Kempe scored twice for a 2-0 lead and were down 3-1 after the first. Dylan Holloway and Hyman (power-play goal) tied the game for Edmonton in the second. Kevin Fiala gave the Kings a 4-3 lead, but Holloway responded less than two minutes later for a 4-4 tie. In overtime, Anze Kopitar scored the winner at 2:07 to even the series.

April 26: Game 3, Western Conference First Round, Crypto.com Arena: Oilers 6, Kings 1

Edmonton took a 3-0 lead in the first with goals from Hyman, Draisaitl and McDavid. They added goals from Kane in the second and power-play goals by Hyman and Draisaitl in the third for a dominating win when they went 3-for-7 on the man-advantage. McDavid, Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins each had three points, and Skinner made 27 saves to give Edmonton a 2-1 series lead.

April 28: Game 4, Western Conference First Round, Crypto.com Arena: Oilers 1, Kings 0

Evan Bouchard's goal at 11:49 of the second period was the only one the Oilers would need. It was scored on the power-play, which at the time was 8-for-15 in the series. Skinner made 33 saves for his first Stanley Cup Playoff shutout and the Oilers moved within one win of the second round.

May 1: Game 5, Western Conference First Round, Rogers Place: Oilers 4, Kings 3

Kane gave the Oilers a 1-0 lead at 10:17 of the first and Alex Laferriere tied it at 19:32. Edmonton was trailing in the second before Draisaitl scored on the power play to tie the game and again than five minutes later for a 3-2 lead. Hyman's goal at 19:07 made it 4-2 and the Oilers held on to win the series.

May 8: Game 1, Western Conference Second Round, Rogers Arena: Canucks 5 Oilers 4

The Oilers got off to a great start with first-period goals from Hyman (power play) and Ekholm for a 2-0 lead and were up 4-1 until Elias Lindholm scored at 17:01 of the second. Vancouver scored three goals on eight shots in the third to stun Edmonton and take a 1-0 series lead.

May 10: Game 2, Western Conference Second Round, Rogers Arena: Oilers 4, Canucks 3, OT

This was a back-and-forth game, with Edmonton coming back from three one-goal deficits. Trailing 3-2 in the third, McDavid scored his second of the playoffs on a breakaway at 5:27 to tie the game, which went to overtime. Bouchard ended it 5:38 into OT to give the Oilers a much-needed win to tie the series. McDavid and Draisaitl each had four points and Skinner made 16 saves.

May 12: Game 3, Western Conference Second Round, Rogers Place: Canucks 4, Oilers 3

After Ekholm scored a power-play goal in the first, Vancouver responded with goals from Lindholm and two by Brock Boeser for a 3-1 lead entering the second. Draisaitl's power-play goal got the Oilers within one, but Lindholm's power-play goal late in the second restored the Canucks' two-goal lead. Bouchard scored early in the third to get Edmonton within 4-3 but that's as close as they would get. Rookie Arturs Silovs made an NHL career-high 42 saves to help the Vancouver take a 2-1 series lead.

May 14: Game 4, Western Conference Second Round, Rogers Place: Oilers 3, Canucks 2

Draisaitl scored for a 1-0 lead at 11:10 of the first, giving the Oilers a power-play goal in each of their first nine games of the postseason. Nugent-Hopkins made it 2-0 in the second, but the Canucks responded with third-period goals by Conor Garland and Dakota Joshua to tie the game 2-2. With the game inching toward overtime, Bouchard's wrist shot from the point through traffic beat Silovs with 39 seconds remaining for a 4-3 lead, which helped Edmonton tie the series. Calvin Pickard made 19 saves for the Oilers in his first NHL playoff start.

May 16: Game 5, Western Conference Second Round, Rogers Arena: Canucks 3, Oilers 2

The Oilers had a 2-1 lead after the first on goals by Kane and Mattias Janmark, until the Canucks tied it at 5:14 of the second. With 33 seconds remaining in the third, Vancouver turned the tables on Edmonton when J.T. Miller scored for a 3-2 lead. Pickard made 32 saves, but it wasn't enough, and the Oilers found themselves facing elimination for the first time in the playoffs.

May 18: Game 6, Western Conference Second Round, Rogers Place: Oilers 5, Canucks 1

Hyman and Bouchard scored in the second to turn a 1-1 game into a 3-1 lead. Nugent-Hopkins and Kane scored in the third to make it 5-1, and Skinner made 14 saves in his return after he was the backup to Pickard the past two games. Bouchard, Nugent-Hopkins and McDavid each had points for Edmonton, which forced a deciding Game 7.

May 20: Game 7, Western Conference Second Round, Rogers Arena: Oilers 3, Canucks 2

The Oilers struck first when Cody Ceci scored 1:16 into the second period. Hyman and Nugent-Hopkins added goals for a 3-0 lead. Edmonton had a 27-12 edge in shots heading into the third and looked well on their way to a victory until Garland and Filip Hronek each scored with under 10 minutes remaining. Vancouver was unable to get a shot on goal after Hronek scored with 4:36 left, and Edmonton won the series to advanced to the West Final for the first time since 2022.

May 23: Game 1, Western Conference Final, American Airlines Center: Oilers 3, Stars 2, OT

Draisaitl and Hyman gave the Oilers a 2-0 lead less than five minutes into the second period, but Tyler Seguin got the Stars within a goal at 6:11. Seguin scored again at 16:37 of the third to tie the game, which went to overtime. McDavid, who was denied by Jake Oettinger's sprawling stick save with 5:21 remaining in the first overtime, scored 32 seconds into the second OT for the win. Skinner made 31 saves, and Edmonton took a 1-0 series lead.

May 25: Game 2, Western Conference Final, American Airlines Center: Stars 3, Oilers 1

With a chance to take a 2-0 series lead on the road, Edmonton came out flat on offense. The teams traded goals in the first period and entered the third with the game tied 1-1. Mason Marchment scored 3:41 into the third and Esa Lindell added an empty-net goal for Dallas, which tied the series. Skinner made 22 saves and the Oilers went 0-for-2 on the power play.

May 27: Game 3, Western Conference Final, Rogers Place: Stars 5, Oilers 3

Hyman and McDavid gave the Oilers a 2-0 lead in the first period, but they were unable to hold it. Jason Robertson scored twice, and Wyatt Johnston also scored in the second to put Dallas ahead 3-2. Adam Henrique tied it with 53 seconds left in the second. In the third, Robertson completed his hat trick and Miro Heiskanen scored an empty-net goal for a 2-1 series lead.

May 29: Game 4, Western Conference Final, Rogers Place: Oilers 5, Stars 2

After Johnston and Lindell gave the Stars a 2-0 lead 5:29 into the first, it looked like the Oilers were on their way to trailing the series 3-1. Then they scored the next five goals, tying the game in the first with goals from Ryan McLeod and Bouchard. Janmark's short-handed goal at 14:31 of the second put the Oilers ahead and Draisaitl added a goal at 15:22. Mattias Ekholm's empty-net goal at 18:07 made it 5-2 and helped the Oilers tie the series.

May 31: Game 5, Western Conference Final, American Airlines Center: Oilers 3, Stars 1

Nugent-Hopkins scored a power-play goal in each of the first two periods, and the Oilers stymied the Stars offense. Skinner made 19 saves for the Oilers, who limited the Stars to 10 shots on goal in the first two periods. Philip Broberg scored in the third for a 3-0 lead in his second game of the playoffs. Though Johnston scored with 5:51 remaining, Edmonton took the series lead and earned a chance to win the Western Conference at home in Game 6.

June 2: Game 6, Western Conference Final, Rogers Place: Oilers 2, Stars 1

Edmonton only had 10 shots on goal, but made them count, scoring on two of its three shots in the first period. McDavid had a highlight-reel goal on the power play at 4:17 before adding an assist on Hyman's playoff-leading 14th goal, with the man-advantage, at 15:42. Marchment scored in the third, but the Stars were otherwise unable to solve Skinner (33 saves). The Oilers held on to advance to the Cup Final for the first time since 2006.