Anaheim Ducks left wing Alex Killorn, left, celebrates his goal as Edmonton Oilers goaltender Connor Ingram sits in goal during the second period of Game 3 in the first round of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs series Friday, April 24, 2026, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

By The Canadian Press

Ducks blast Oilers 7-4 in Anaheim’s first home playoff game in 8 years, lead series 2-1

Apr 24, 2026 | 10:08 PM

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Beckett Sennecke and Leo Carlsson scored 42 seconds apart in the third period, Mikael Granlund had a goal and three assists, and the Anaheim Ducks celebrated their first home playoff game in eight years with a 7-4 victory over the Edmonton Oilers and a 2-1 series lead on Friday night.

Jeffrey Viel and Jackson LaCombe also scored in the third and Lukas Dostal made 20 saves for the upstart Ducks, who have poured in 16 goals in three games to take an early lead in this first-round series against the two-time Western Conference champion Oilers. Mason McTavish and Alex Killorn scored early goals.

Backed by a raucous sellout crowd hungry for Orange County’s first playoff hockey since 2018, the Ducks overcame their season-long defensive shortcomings by outscoring the powerhouse Oilers even after Connor McDavid recorded his first points of the series.

Game 4 is Sunday night in Anaheim.

McDavid had a power-play goal in the third period and an assist for Edmonton. Vasily Podkolzin, Kasperi Kapanen and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins also scored, and Connor Ingram stopped 32 shots.

Homeless Camp Death

Man arrested after homicide at Abbotsford homeless camp Friday evening

6h ago

Chilliwack School District

SD33 tackling school enrollment and capacity at upcoming board meeting

12h ago

Arson suspect arrested

34-year-old school arson suspect arrested: Abbotsford PD

14h ago

Appropriately for a defence-deficient series, the Ducks capitalized on two transition sequences early in the third to take control.

Moments after Sennecke ripped a wrist shot for the tiebreaking goal and the precocious rookie’s first playoff point, Carlsson clinically finished a textbook 2-on-1 rush with Troy Terry.

McDavid trimmed the Oilers’ deficit with a fortunate deflection off Pavel Mintyukov’s stick, but the Oilers superstar short-circuited another power play later in the third by cross-checking Tyson Hinds.

Viel then flipped home a backhand with 3:03 left to cap a strong game by the Ducks’ fourth line, and LaCombe lofted home an empty-net goal all the way from the Ducks’ goal line to seal Anaheim’s first home playoff victory since May 14, 2017, in the conference final against Nashville.

The clubs split the series’ first two games in Edmonton, but the Ducks demonstrated they could stay with the playoff-tested Oilers despite the obvious deficiencies of an inexperienced group that allowed more goals this season than any other playoff team.

Anaheim rode the wave of crowd energy and dominated play early in Game 3, putting 20 shots on Ingram in the first period. Killorn tied it for Anaheim in the second with his 39th career playoff goal.

Oilers forwards Adam Henrique and Jason Dickinson missed Game 3 with injuries.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/nhl

Greg Beacham, The Associated Press

by The Canadian Press

Click here to report an error or typo in this article

Join Our Daily Email

Ducks blast Oilers 7-4 in Anaheim’s first home playoff game in 8 years, lead series 2-1

More Local News