Oilers' Game 7 history ahead of matchup with Canucks

EDMONTON -- The Edmonton Oilers have a storied history in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs and will take part in a series-deciding contest for the 12th time when they face the Vancouver Canucks in Game 7 of the Western Conference Second Round at Rogers Arena on Monday (9 p.m. ET; CBC, TVAS, SN, ESPN).

Edmonton is 7-4 all time in Game 7s and last went to the limit in the 2022 Western Conference First Round against the Los Angeles Kings.

Here is a history of the Oilers in Game 7s.

April 22, 1984: Oilers vs Calgary Flames, Division Final

The Flames forced Game 7 with consecutive 5-4 wins to battle back from a 3-1 series deficit. Defenseman Lee Fogolin and Wayne Gretzky scored 20 seconds apart midway through the first period to give the Oilers a 2-0 lead, but Carey Wilson and Steve Bozek responded for the Flames to tie the game 2-2 before the end of the first period. Jari Kurri restored the lead for the Oilers 1:15 into the second period, but Steve Konroyd and Al MacInnis countered to give Calgary a 4-3 lead at the 10:15 mark of the second period. Glenn Anderson, Ken Linseman and Kurri responded before the end of the period to wrestle away control of the game, and Pat Hughes scored the lone goal of the third period for the Oilers in a 7-4 win.

April 30, 1986: Oilers vs Calgary Flames, Division Final

Oilers defenseman Steve Smith hit the leg of goalie Grant Fuhr with his pass attempt from behind the goal line and it bounced into the net at 5:14 of the third period, which proved to be the deciding goal in a 3-2 Calgary win. Perry Berezan, who had dumped the puck into the zone and headed off for a line change, was credited with the goal. Hakan Loob and Jim Peplinski had given the Flames at 2-0 lead, but Anderson and Mark Messier tied it 2-2 before the end of the second period. Mike Vernon made 22 saves in goal for the Flames.

May 31, 1987: Oilers vs Philadelphia Flyers, Stanley Cup Final

Edmonton won its third Stanley Cup with a Game 7 win against the Flyers, whose rookie goalie Ron Hextall was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as Stanley Cup Playoff MVP, becoming the fourth of five players to win the award as a member of the losing team. Murray Craven gave Philadelphia the lead 1:41 into the first period before Messier tied it at 7:45. Hextall kept the Flyers in the game by making 31 saves over two periods, but Kurri put the Oilers ahead 2-1 at 14:59 of the second period. Anderson put the game away with a goal at 17:36 of the third period for the 3-1 win. Hextall finished with 40 saves as the Oilers outshot the Flyers 43-20 in the game.

April 15, 1989: Oilers at Los Angeles Kings, Division Semifinal

Facing Gretzky in the playoffs for the first time since he was traded to the Los Angeles Kings the previous offseason, the Oilers held a 3-1 series lead but lost Games 5 and 6 to set up Game 7 in Los Angeles. Gretzky opened the scoring for the Kings 52 seconds into the game before Kurri tied it 1-1 at 4:48. Los Angeles went on to take the lead two more times, and Edmonton was able to battle back on both occasions. Tied 3-3 in the second period, Bernie Nicholls scored, set up by Gretzky, to give the Kings a 4-3 lead, and Dale Degray extended it to 5-3 at 14:50 of the third. Gretzky put the game away with an empty-net goal at 18:25 to eliminate his former team.

April 16, 1990: Oilers vs Winnipeg Jets, Division Semifinal

This time it was the Oilers battling back from a 3-1 series deficit, and they completed the comeback with a 4-1 win. First-period goals from Anderson and Mark Lamb to counter a goal from Thomas Steen gave the Oilers a 2-1 lead. Esa Tikkanen and Kurri scored in the third period to put the game away. Edmonton went on to win the Stanley Cup for the fifth time, cruising through the next three rounds, losing three games in total, in wins against the Kings, Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins.

April 16, 1991: Oilers at Calgary Flames, Division Seminal

An overtime goal from Theo Fleury in Game 6 in Edmonton forced Game 7 in the series in Calgary. The Flames had been down 3-1 in the series and had all the momentum going into the deciding game. Calgary took a 3-0 lead on first-period goals from Robert Reichel, Joe Nieuwendyk and Fleury, but Tikkanen scored for the Oilers before the end of the period to give them life. Anderson and Tikkanen scored in the second to tie it 3-3, and Anatoli Semenov gave the Oilers a 4-3 lead at 4:38 of the third period. Ronnie Stern tied it 4-4 for the Flames with 2:10 left in the third, sending the game into overtime, where Tikkanen completed his hat trick at 6:58 for the 5-4 win.

April 29, 1997: Oilers at Dallas Stars, Conference Quarterfinal

Todd Marchant scored one of the most memorable overtime goals in Oilers history in the 4-3 win. Benoit Hogue gave Dallas a 1-0 lead at 1:38 of the first period, but Rem Murray scored seven seconds later to tie it 1-1. Both teams scored twice in the second period and the 3-3 tie held through the third into overtime. Prior to Marchant speeding down the right wing and scoring on Stars goalie Andy Moog, Curtis Joseph made an outstanding diving glove save on Nieuwendyk to keep the game going.

May 4, 1998: Oilers at Colorado Avalanche, Conference Quarterfinal

The Oilers were heavy underdogs going into the series against the Avalanche and battled back from a 3-1 deficit to force Game 7 in Denver. Joseph made 31 saves for the shutout in the 4-0 win. Janne Niinimaa and Bill Guerin scored in the first period on Hall of Fame goalie Patrick Roy to give Edmonton a 2-0 lead. Marchant and Mats Lindgren scored in the second and third period, respectively, in the win.

June 19, 2006: Oilers at Carolina Hurricanes, Stanley Cup Final

The most painful Game 7 loss in Oilers history, Edmonton fell one win short of winning the Stanley Cup for the sixth time. Aaron Ward gave the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead 1:26 into the first period and Frantisek Kaberle made it 2-0 at 4:18 of the second. Fernando Pisani scored at 1:03 of the third period to cut the deficit to 2-1, but they could not beat goalie Cam Ward again. Justin Williams scored into an empty net at 18:59 to give Carolina its first Stanley Cup.

May 10, 2017, Oilers at Anaheim Ducks, Western Conference Second Round

The Oilers went into Game 7 in Anaheim off a 7-1 win in Game 6 at home three days earlier. The deciding game turned out to be a tight contest, which the Ducks won 2-1. Drake Caggiula scored to give Edmonton the lead at 3:31 of the first period and Andrew Cogliano tied it 1-1 at 8:55 of the second. Nick Ritchie scored the winning goal at 3:21 of the third for Anaheim. John Gibson made 23 saves for the Ducks in the win.

May 14, 2022: Oilers vs Los Angeles Kings, Western Conference First Round

Mike Smith made 29 saves in the 2-0 win. Edmonton trailed 3-2 in the series and won Game 6 in Los Angeles to force a Game 7 at home. Connor McDavid set up defenseman Cody Ceci at 13:15 of the second period to give the Oilers a 1-0 lead. McDavid then scored at 16:07 of the third period to seal the victory. Kings goalie Jonathan Quick made 39 saves in the loss.