Edmonton can't afford another loss after dropping Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final to the Florida Panthers on Saturday night, but Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch believes his team will respond with their backs against the wall.
"Knowing that we're in a difficult situation, win our last two games, is something we're confident that we can do that," Knoblauch said postgame. "We've been through difficult situations before, and here's just another one that we'll overcome."
The Panthers skated to a commanding 5-2 victory in Game 5, limiting the Oilers to only 21 shots on goal and 11 scoring chances at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Florida jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first period and added a third goal early in the third period. The Panthers have scored at least two goals in the opening frame in each game of the series.
"Speaking for tonight, getting behind, obviously, is tough," Knoblauch said. "You can only do it so many times against this team. I thought we had a good start, and we didn't capitalize on our early chances. Made a couple mistakes, obviously they capitalized."
The Oilers erased a 3-0 deficit in Game 4 before winning in overtime, their eighth comeback victory of the postseason. Edmonton overcame series deficits in the first round against the Los Angeles Kings as well as in the Western Conference Final against the Dallas Stars.
Goaltender Calvin Pickard getting the start was a major storyline before the game. He earned the win in Game 4 after replacing Stuart Skinner but allowed four goals on 18 shots Saturday.
Knoblauch was noncommittal on who will be between the pipes for Game 6.
"I'm not going to make that decision right now, after a tough loss like tonight," he said. "From what I saw, I think Picks didn't have much chance on those goals. Breakaways, shots through screens, slot shots. There's nothing saying that it was a poor performance."
Florida can close out the series in Game 6 on Tuesday night in Sunrise, Florida.
