Once the Edmonton Oilers fell behind 3-0 in the Stanley Cup Final, they pointed out that they had shown the ability during the regular season to string together a series of wins.
They turned it around from a 3-9-1 start this season with a coaching change, improved play and winning streaks of eight games and 16 games to make the playoffs.
They've shown that ability since Game 3's loss, winning the past two games 8-1 and 5-3 to force a Game 6. The Florida Panthers need just one victory in the next two games to clinch their first NHL championship, but the Oilers are in position to tie the series if they win Friday's home game.
"We're playing on house money," coach Kris Knoblauch told reporters on Wednesday. "Nobody's expected us to be here right now. Nobody gave us an opportunity to maybe even be in the Stanley Cup Final, let alone give us an opportunity to claw our way back in this series. We're just having fun. There's always been a lot of belief in this room."
Connor McDavid is on fire
He already broke Wayne Gretzky's record for assists in a postseason and he set another Stanley Cup Final record by totaling eight points in the last two games. With 42 points, he's five points behind Gretzky's record for points in a single postseason.
McDavid has always had the ability to make slick moves at speed, but he raised his level in Game 5. He scored from a sharp angle and later weaved his way through traffic to set up Corey Perry's goal.
Oilers were playing well previously, now are getting results
They carried play in Game 1 only to be thwarted by Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. They were done in by mistakes in Game 3 and nearly fought back. They put it all together in the past two games, solving Bobrovsky and taking advantage of the Panthers' mistakes. Stymied early in the series by the Panthers' forecheck, they've helped counteract that with quick up-ice passes.
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