5 Unforgettable Playoff Games Between the Oilers and Ducks – The Hockey Writers – Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks are set to face off in the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Their best-of-seven series opens Monday (April 20) at Rogers Place in downtown Edmonton.

This is only the third time that these Pacific Division rivals have met in a postseason series: Edmonton beat Anaheim 4-1 in the 2006 Western Conference Final, and the Ducks got past the Oilers in seven games in Round 2 in 2017.

But while the teams’ postseason history is limited, it’s certainly not lacking in memorable moments. Here’s a look at five unforgettable Stanley Cup Playoff games between the Oilers and Ducks.

May 23, 2006: Oilers 5 vs. Ducks 4

After winning the first two games of the 2006 Western Conference Final on the road, the Oilers returned to Rexall Place with a chance to take a stranglehold on the series.

There was just one goal total over the first 40 minutes of Game 3: Toby Petersen tallied in the first period to give Edmonton a 1-0 lead. But once the third period started, the rails came off.

It started with the home team scoring three times in a span of 141 seconds, as Edmonton got goals from Mike Peca at 2:19, Steve Staios at 3:35, and Chris Pronger at 4:40. Suddenly, the Oilers led 4-0 with just over 15 minutes to play.

But then Anaheim roared to life, scoring three times in four minutes, getting goals from Sean O’Donnell at 7:15, Teemu Selanne at 9:13, and Chris Kunitz at 11:15. Just like that, Edmonton’s lead was cut to one with nearly half a period remaining.

Edmonton answered less than three minutes later, when Fernando Pisani tallied at 14:14 to put his team ahead 5-3. The Rexall Place faithful couldn’t relax for long, though, as former Oiler Todd Marchant sent stress levels skyrocketing when he scored at 18:15 to pull Anaheim back within one goal.

It was only when Peca cleared the puck down the ice with just a few seconds remaining—only moments after Anaheim’s Scott Niedermayer missed a glorious opportunity to tie the game—that Edmonton could finally breathe easy.

May 27, 2006: Oilers 2 at Ducks 1

Edmonton had a chance to close out the 2006 Western Conference Final on home ice, but lost Game 4 by a score of 6-3 at Rexall Place, necessitating a fifth game back at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim.

Anaheim struck first, with Francois Beauchemin scoring on the power play at 7:30 of the first period to put the Ducks ahead 1-0. That, however, was Anaheim’s final goal of the postseason.

Edmonton forwards Ethan Moreau and Raffi Torres scored at 3:42 and 8:31 of the second period, putting their team in front 2-1. Then Dwayne Roloson took over.

The Oilers netminder was terrific in Game 3, making 32 saves total and stopping the final 27 shots he faced. Edmonton killed off four power plays in the third period, including 28 seconds of a 5-on-3 advantage for Anaheim in the final minutes of the game.

When the final horn sounded, the Oilers bench emptied, mobbing Roloson as they celebrated the franchise’s first conference championship in 16 years.

May 5, 2017: Ducks 4 vs. Oilers 3 (2OT)

Edmonton went on the road and won the first two games of its second-round matchup against Anaheim in the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs, before the Ducks bounced back with a pair of victories at Rogers Place. With the series now deadlocked, the winner of the next contest would take control.

The Oilers surged ahead 3-0 in Game 5 at Honda Center, as Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid and Drake Caggiula scored during the second period. Edmonton’s three-goal lead held up until just over three minutes remained in the third period. Then the roof fell in on the visitors.

It started with Anaheim forward Ryan Getzlaf scoring at 16:44. Thirty-six seconds later, Cam Fowler put the puck behind Oilers netminder Cam Talbot, cutting Edmonton’s lead to one. Then, with only 15.6 seconds remaining in regulation, Rickard Rakell scored a goal that still enrages Oilers fans.

Prior to the goal, Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse pushed Anaheim’s Ryan Kesler into Talbot. Kesler, however, made no attempt to leave the crease and grabbed onto Talbot’s pad, preventing the goaltender from being able to stop the shot from Rakell. The play went to video review, but the goal stood.

After all that chaos, things settled down in overtime. The first period of sudden death solved nothing, so the teams went to double OT, where Corey Perry scored at 6:57 to give Anaheim a 4-3 victory and a 3-2 series lead.

May 7, 2017: Oilers 7 vs. Ducks 1

Edmonton couldn’t have felt much lower after blowing a 3-0 lead with just over three minutes left to lose a third straight game against the Ducks. Many wondered how the Oilers would respond in Game 6, back at home, with their postseason on the line. The answer: incredibly well.

The Oilers blew the Ducks out of the water in the first period, jumping ahead 5-0 after 20 minutes thanks to two goals apiece from Draisaitl and Mark Letestu, along with one from Zack Kassian. The game was already a rout when Anton Slepyshev scored just 45 seconds into the middle frame to put Edmonton ahead by six.

Rakell got Anaheim on the board midway through the second period, before Draisaitl completed his hat trick at 15:27. From that point, it was pretty much cruise control. Neither team lit the lamp for the rest of the game, which ended in a 7-1 triumph for Edmonton.

At the time, the six-goal margin of victory was the Oilers’ largest in a playoff game since 1990, while their seven goals were the most by Edmonton in a postseason game since 1991. Draisaitl became the first Oiler to notch a playoff hat trick in 17 years, and with the win, the Oilers were headed for their first Game 7 since the 2006 Stanley Cup Final.

May 10, 2017: Ducks 2 vs. Oilers 1

They call “Game 7” the best two words in sports. But on May 10, 2017, those words meant nothing but anguish to the Oilers and their fans.

Before a raucous crowd at the Honda Center, the Ducks defeated Edmonton by a score of 2-1 to win their second-round series. It marked the first time in franchise history that the Oilers lost a series after winning the first two games.

Edmonton had actually taken an early lead, with Caggiula scoring just 3:31 into the first period. Anaheim didn’t get on the board until 8:55 of the middle frame, when former Oiler Andrew Cogliano slid the puck past Talbot to tie things up. Then Nick Ritchie scored at 3:21 of the third period, putting Anaheim ahead 2-1.

Ritchie’s goal proved to be the series-winner. The clock ran out on the Oilers, who managed just two shots on goal over the final eight minutes of the third period. The veteran Ducks masterfully protected their lead, allowing Edmonton few chances at scoring the equalizer.

That heartbreaking loss brought an end to the first postseason run for Edmonton’s current core of McDavid, Draisaitl, Nurse and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Nine years later, that quartet enters the Stanley Cup Playoffs for an eighth time together, looking to win their first championship. First up is a date with the Ducks.