The Edmonton Oilers postseason begins on Monday.

Heading into the final day of the season on Thursday, the Oilers first round opponent was anyone’s best guess. There were three possibilities: The Colorado Avalanche, the Los Angeles Kings, and the Anaheim Ducks. Before the Vegas Golden Knights won on Wednesday, the Oilers even could’ve played the Utah Mammoth.

But after Thursday’s slate of games, the Oilers opponent was made official. They’ll play the Ducks with home ice advantage. Of course, it’s not the first time the Oilers have played the Ducks in the postseason, as the two Pacific Division teams have battled two other times.

In this edition of Flashback Friday, we’ll take a look at those two other series.

2006 Western Conference Finals

By the time the Oilers met the Ducks in the Western Conference Finals in 2006, the Oilers were on a roll. Entering the postseason as the eighth seed, they knocked off the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Detroit Red Wings in six games, before dropping the first two games against the San Jose Sharks. They then proceeded to win the next four games to head to the Conference Finals.

Game 1

With the Oilers being the eighth seed in the Western Conference, the first two games were held in Anaheim. Michael Peca opened the series scoring with 95 seconds left in the first period, but Andy McDonald tied it for the Mighty Ducks (their name at the time). 

Aleš Hemský scored his fourth of the season on a power play midway through the second period, which turned out to be the game-winner. For good measure, Toddy Harvey buried it into the empty netter with 42 seconds left, with the Oilers taking Game 1 by a score of 3-1.

Their player of the game had to be netminder Dwayne Roloson, basically the story of the 2006 postseason, as the Oilers’ goalie stopped 31 of 32 shots for a .969 save percentage. Funnily enough, Corey Perry was a healthy scratch for the Mighty Ducks in this game.

Game 2

Game 2 had the exact same result, as the Oilers won 3-1 to take a 2-0 series lead. Chris Pronger scored his third goal of the season on the power play with about seven minutes left in the first. Six minutes into the first, Jeff Friesen tied the game for the Mighty Ducks.

Then with about three minutes left in the second period, Fernando Pisani scored his eighth of the postseason to give the Oilers a 2-1 lead. Peca buried the empty netter with 18 seconds left for the victory.

Not only was the score the same, but the two teams had nearly the identical number of shots as they did two days prior. In Game 1, the Oilers flung 26 shots on the Mighty Ducks’ netminder. They only totalled 26 in Game 2, while Roloson stopped 33 of 34 shots for a .971 save percentage.

Game 3

The Oilers had all the momentum as the series shifted to Alberta. With six minutes left in the first, Toby Petersen scored his first of the postseason on a wrap-around, giving the Oilers an early lead.

Game 3 stood that way until the third period, when Peca scored just over two minutes into the final frame, giving the Oilers a 2-0 lead. Then just over a minute later, Steve Staios scored his first of the playoffs thanks to a power play goal. That momentum continued with Pronger’s power play goal a little a minute after that.

Entering the third period, the Oilers were only up 1-0, but before the five minute mark, they extended that lead to 4-0. That said, it was far from over. Sean O’Donnell got the Mighty Ducks on the board with just under 13 minutes to play, then Teemu Selänne scored two minutes later, cutting the Oilers’ lead in half.

Things got hairy when Chris Kunitz scored midway through the third period, but Pisani answered back with his ninth of the postseason with just 5:46 on the board. That was a much-needed insurance goal, as Todd Marchant scored with 1:45 left on the clock. Fortunately, the Oilers held on for the 5-4 victory and 3-0 series lead.

It wasn’t Roloson’s best game, though he faced 38 shots and saved 34 of them, good enough for an .895 save percentage.

Game........

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