Chris Kreider, Troy Terry and Leo Carlsson each scored and recorded three-point performances as the Anaheim Ducks defeated the Edmonton Oilers 5-2 in Game 6 on Thursday to advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Cutter Gauthier added a goal and an assist, while Ryan Poehling also scored for Anaheim, which clinched the Western Conference quarterfinal series 4-2. Goaltender Lukas Dostal made 25 saves as the Ducks secured their first playoff series win since 2017.

Terry reflected on the series, noting the importance of Game 1 despite a loss. “The first period of the first game, you could see the nerves, but that first game was huge for us. We didn't win, but we proved to ourselves we could play with that team,” he said. “To beat that team is pretty special.”

Anaheim will face either the Vegas Golden Knights or Utah Mammoth in the Western Conference semifinals. Vegas currently leads that series 3-2.

Connor Murphy and Vasily Podkolzin scored for Edmonton, which has reached the Stanley Cup Final in each of the past two seasons. Goaltender Connor Ingram stopped 26 shots in the loss.

Oilers star Leon Draisaitl said the team fell short of expectations. “Never really found what you need to find this time of year, especially to go all the way. In my opinion, just not good enough,” he said. “They were the better team.”

For the first time in the series, Anaheim struck first when Poehling opened the scoring midway through the first period. After sustained pressure in the offensive zone, John Carlson’s point shot deflected off a defender and then Poehling’s leg before crossing the goal line.

Kreider extended the lead four minutes later with a one-timer on the rush, marking his first goal of the series on his 35th birthday.

“Our guys played our best game of the year at the biggest time of the year,” Ducks coach Joel Quenneville said on TNT. “That’s a great sign.”

Murphy responded for Edmonton 91 seconds later, scoring during a net-front scramble to cut the deficit. However, Gauthier restored Anaheim’s two-goal lead with a power-play goal at 16:50 of the opening period. The Ducks scored at least one power-play goal in all six games of the series.

“We knew coming into it we could play our best game,” Terry said. “Our special teams were good, our back end played great against their big guys. We got timely scoring and good goaltending.”

Terry later made it 4-1 late in the second period, burying a shot from the slot with 46.5 seconds remaining after an Edmonton goal was waved off moments earlier.

Podkolzin gave the Oilers life early in the third period when his attempt went wide before deflecting off his leg and into the net just 73 seconds in.

However, Carlsson sealed the win with an empty-net goal with 3:34 remaining.

Oilers captain Connor McDavid acknowledged the team’s inconsistency throughout the season and playoffs.

“We’ve been searching for consistency all year. Obviously, we didn’t find it in the playoffs,” McDavid said. “We were an average team all year. An average team with high expectations, you’re going to be disappointed. We expected to have a longer run than we did.” -Field Level Media/Reuters