3 Keys: Oilers at Canucks, Game 7 of Western 2nd Round | NHL.com

2. Something’s Stu’ing

So which Stuart Skinner will be the Oilers be getting in this all-or-nothing game?

Will it be the goalie who was beaten 12 times on 58 shots through the first three games of the series before being benched for backup Calvin Pickard in Games 4 and 5?

Or will it be the guy who looked much steadier upon his return to the starting role for Game 6, a 5-1 Oilers victory.

This much is certain: a good chunk of Edmonton’s Stanley Cup aspirations, let alone coming out on top in Game 7 against the Canucks, rests on Skinner’s ability to overcome the yips he had early in the series.

“I feel he’s great a recognizing when he needs to be a notch better or when he knows he’s at his level,” Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. “He’s already gone through a lot in his career and he knows what to do out there. 

“I’m not worried about him. It was great to see him come back in Game 6 and play the way he did.”

3. Seize the moment

“There’s no tomorrow.”

“It’s do-or-die.”

“Everything’s on the line.”

Use whatever cliche you want, but they all hold true in a Game 7. And whether it’s a superstar or a fourth liner, the stage is set for someone to step up and be a hero, Tocchet said.

“Obviously there are expectations of star players,” he said. “But often it’s the role players who come through big.

“You just never know.”

Such is the beauty of a Game 7.

Canucks projected lineup

Pius Suter — J.T. Miller — Ilya Mikheyev

Dakota Joshua — Elias Lindholm — Conor Garland

Nils Hoglander — Elias Pettersson — Sam Lafferty

Phil Di Giuseppe — Teddy Blueger — Nils Aman

Quinn Hughes — Filip Hronek

Carson Soucy — Tyler Myers

Nikita Zadorov — Ian Cole

Arturs Silovs

Casey DeSmith

Scratched: Mark Friedman, Noah Juulsen, Linus Karlsson, Christian Wolanin, Vasily Podkolzin

Injured: Thatcher Demko (undisclosed), Brock Boeser (undisclosed)

Oilers projected lineup

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins — Connor McDavid — Zach Hyman

Dylan Holloway — Leon Draisaitl — Evander Kane

Warren Foegele — Ryan McLeod — Derek Ryan

Mattias Janmark — Sam Carrick — Connor Brown

Mattias Ekholm — Evan Bouchard

Darnell Nurse — Vincent Desharnais

Brett Kulak — Cody Ceci

Stuart Skinner

Calvin Pickard

Scratched: Corey Perry, Sam Gagner, Troy Stecher

Injured: Adam Henrique (lower body)

Status report

The Canucks held a sparsely attended morning skate Monday, so it’s unclear how their lines will look without Boeser. Pettersson played right wing with Lindholm the past two games and could line up with Miller in Boeser’s spot on the top line, or he could resume centering his own line, something he’s done for all but a few games this season. … Mikheyev and Lafferty are back in the lineup after being scratched the past two games. Podkolzin, a forward, comes out after averaging just over eight minutes of ice time the past two games, his first two in the NHL playoffs. … The Oilers held an optional morning skate but aren’t making any lineup changes, meaning Perry, a forward with 10 Game 7s in his career, will be scratched for the second straight game. h Herb Brooks called him.