Edmonton Oilers back in Stanley Cup final after Game 5 win over Dallas Stars

Joshua Clipperton · The Canadian Press

· Posted: May 29, 2025 10:45 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

The Edmonton Oilers were teetering connected their heels. The Dallas Stars' propulsion felt relentless.

The assemblage wrong a raucous American Airlines Center could consciousness their squad was connected the cusp of climbing retired of a heavy hole.

Like helium has truthful galore times, Connor McDavid stepped up successful a large infinitesimal Thursday — and pushed his radical to different Stanley Cup final.

Edmonton's superstar skipper took vantage of a fortunate bounce earlier moving successful unsocial and dekeing Stars goaltender Casey DeSmith to the crystal connected an electrical forehand determination with Dallas centre Roope Hintz each implicit him for a 4-2 lead.

"My hockey encephalon goes to, 'That's astir apt 1 of the nicest goals I've seen him score,"' said Oilers centre Leon Draisaitl, who has grown up successful the NHL alongside McDavid. "Just the full situation, however it played out, who helium had coming up down him. That's a big-time play. There's lone 1 subordinate successful the satellite that tin bash that successful that moment.

"We're precise fortunate to person him connected our side."

McDavid's extremity with 5:32 near successful the mediate play killed the location side's momentum successful what would upwind up being a 6-3 last to clinch the Oilers' 2nd consecutive Western Conference crown and acceptable up a rematch with the Florida Panthers successful the rubric series.

"Incredible," said Edmonton defenceman Darnell Nurse, whose squad built an aboriginal 3-0 vantage earlier Dallas yet chopped its shortage to one. "The large moments, helium ever steps up and makes specified a quality for our team. We're truthful fortunate to person him. That was a extremity and an illustration of a large subordinate making a large play successful a large moment."

"He's not missing that," Stars caput manager Pete DeBoer lamented. "It's crippled over."

McDavid, who grabbed clasp of the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl aft not touching the trophy past twelvemonth erstwhile the Oilers besides bushed the Stars to assertion the West, added an assistance to go the second-fastest subordinate successful league past to scope 100 successful the post-season down lone Wayne Gretzky.

The 28-year-old besides joined The Great One arsenic the 2nd subordinate to registry astatine slightest 3 abstracted playoffs with 20 assists.

All the talk, however, was astir the goal.

"That's a Connor McDavid benignant of play," said seasoned winger Corey Perry, who volition play successful his sixth final. "That's conscionable the subordinate helium is."

McDavid and his Oilers were near heartbroken past June aft coming backmost from a 3-0 shortage successful the last against the Panthers with a trio of victories — mostly acknowledgment to No. 97's record-breaking show — lone to travel up conscionable abbreviated successful Game 7.

The Richmond Hill, Ont., merchandise past helped Canada to a triumph astatine the Four Nations Face-Off successful February with an overtime extremity against the United States earlier starring the Oilers, who were down 2-0 to the Los Angeles Kings successful the opening circular this spring, connected different memorable run.

"Last mates of years has been immoderate of the astir amusive I've had playing hockey," said the No. 1 prime astatine the 2015 draft. "It's going to beryllium an breathtaking month."

McDavid, whose Oilers volition big Game 1 against Florida successful the Alberta superior connected Wednesday, was asked astir his quality to beryllium the subordinate his teammates look to astatine crunch time.

"We've prepared to beryllium successful this presumption for a agelong time," helium said. "These are much mean positions for america now. The infinitesimal doesn't consciousness big, it doesn't consciousness thing different than hockey, and that allows you to marque your play."

Head manager Kris Knoblauch has seen McDavid's magic since helium was a teen erstwhile the brace were unneurotic with the Ontario Hockey League's Erie Otters much than a decennary ago.

"Alleviates a batch of that pressure," Knoblauch said of Thursday's breakaway brilliance. "I've seen Connor bash it galore times."

Edmonton volition present pivot to Florida, which rolled done the Carolina Hurricanes successful 5 games to instrumentality the East title.

"I deliberation we're better," McDavid said of this Oilers iteration compared to 12 months ago. "We're amended for it going done past year. It was a large learning experience, and it's truly driven america each year.

"This tally has felt different."

They volition beryllium hoping for a antithetic result.

WATCH | The country from the Moss Pit shutdown: 

In Edmonton, during the 2nd intermission, fans watching from the Moss Pit were ushered wrong Rogers Place, after Environment Canada issued an alert astir a "very dangerous" thunderstorm that could nutrient "destructive upwind gusts."

A spokesperson for Oilers proprietor OEG Inc. told CBC News that getting fans wrong was portion of its information procedures. Personnel acceptable up a surface successful Ford Hall so those fans could keep watching the game.