McDavid says playing in Game 7 'something that you dream about'

EDMONTON -- Connor McDavid has played in two previous Stanley Cup Playoffs series-deciding games with the Edmonton Oilers and said he can take something from those experiences into Game 7 against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on Monday (9 p.m. ET; CBC, TVAS, SN, ESPN).

"It's good to have played in a couple of Game 7s, and it's not new to you," McDavid said Monday. "But that being said, you've only played in a couple; it's exciting there's going to be that excitement and anticipation there and I'm just looking forward to getting going."

Edmonton is 7-4 all time in Game 7, and 3-3 on the road. The last time the Oilers played a Game 7, they won 2-0 at home against the Los Angeles Kings in the first round in 2022. McDavid had a goal and assist in the game and Mike Smith made 29 saves for the shutout.

McDavid's first Game 7 was in 2017, losing 2-1, on the road, against the Anaheim Ducks in the second round.

"It's something that you dream about, playing in a Game 7," McDavid said. "Especially as a Canadian kid in an all-Canadian series, knowing what it means to both fan bases, knowing what it means to the country, it's exciting."

The Oilers will use the same lineup from a 5-1 win in Game 6 in Edmonton on Saturday, which includes goalie Stuart Skinner, who was the back up in Games 4 and 5, and forward Sam Carrick, who remains in for Corey Perry on the fourth line.

Vancouver will be without forward Brock Boeser, who was ruled out due to an undisclosed injury. Boeser has 12 points (seven goals, five assists) in 12 playoff games, including six points (three goals, three assists) in six games in this series.

"They have lots of great players, obviously Brock is a heck of a player and he's played really well and scored lots of goals and done a lot of good things," McDavid said. "But they have lots of players, they've had guys coming into the lineup all series, so I wouldn't expect too much different."

Boeser has traditionally been the Canucks biggest threat against the Oilers. He has 27 points (16 goals, 11 assists) in 31 regular-season games against them, his most goals and assists against any team.

"First of all, hopefully he's all right, that's something you never want to go through, and we wish him all the best," Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. "It's a Game 7 and one player doesn't really affect much, it's a mindset for us at being at the best in our game and bringing what we can and hopefully that will be good enough."

Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch expects the Canucks to rally around the absence of their top goal scorer in the playoffs and regular season (40 goals). He has seen in the past opponents elevate their game when a key member is unable to play.

"We need to not let down and not take a step back, and think it's going to be easy," Knoblauch said. "We've seen this many times before where a team is missing a key player and how everyone steps up their game. Everyone steps up a little bit and it's a very strong team performance. For short-term, it's a very powerful thing for a team."

Vancouver is 6-6 all time in Game 7. The Canucks have not played in one since losing 3-0 against the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2020 Western Conference Second Round.

"We're not going to talk too much about their state of mind and how they're going to rally together," Knoblauch said. "We're going to talk about what we need to do and the key points of what we need to do to be successful."

A lot is on the line in Game 7 for the Oilers, who are in their championship window according to general manager Ken Holland. Edmonton made it to the Western Conference Final in 2022 and was swept by the Colorado Avalanche, and last season, was eliminated by the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round.

"I think it feels a lot like a regular game day and there's definitely a little bit of a buzz in the air and I think those are all good things," McDavid said. "You want that normalcy, you want it to feel like part of your regular routine, but also understand that the intensity is going to go up and you have to be ready for that."