Saskatoon Blades, Edmonton Oil Kings to clash in crucial Game 5 match up with series tied

Guaranteed to play at least six games against the Edmonton Oil Kings to kick off Western Hockey League playoffs, the Saskatoon Blades aren’t surprised their opening round series is going long.

In fact, it’s what they had prepared for, with a pivotal Game 5 on the horizon Friday night.

“They knew it was going to be a long series,” said Blades head coach, Dan DaSilva. “We’re prepared for that and I believe that’s in our favour. We’re just going to stick with our process and keep believing.”

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The Blades and Oil Kings will meet at Rogers Place on Friday with a 3-2 series lead on the line following a 5-2 victory by Edmonton in Game 4 of the series Wednesday in Saskatoon.

Miroslav Holinka led the way for the Oil Kings with a hat-trick performance, tying up the series with Saskatoon at 2-2 and turning it into a best-of-three affair moving forward.

While the Blades didn’t come out with their brand of hard-nosed hockey on Wednesday night in Game 4, DaSilva is confident they can get back to what’s made them successful so far in playoffs.

“Just because we lost (on Wednesday) doesn’t mean the series is over or anything like that,” DaSilva said.

“There’s still lots of hockey to be played. It’s going to be some ups and downs from here on out too, just embracing the grind of playoffs and the challenge that the Oil Kings are.”

Post-game on Wednesday, DaSilva called the loss of power forward, Zach Olsen, a tough blow for the team in Game 4 after he was unable to dress following warm-up.

The Blades are optimistic the draft-eligible winger will be good to go for Game 5 on the road.

Earning two wins in regulation against the Oil Kings this series and taking Game 2 to overtime, forward Kazden Mathies believes they have the ability to go into Edmonton and steal another victory on Friday.

“We can beat the better teams, the higher seed,” Mathies said. “Everything resets in playoffs and we’ve shown that we can be the better team in the series.”

While the Blades await to see if Olsen will be ready to play in Game 5, the Oil Kings are dealing with their own rash of injuries and player absences with goaltender Parker Snell, defenceman Blake Fiddler and forwards Max Curran and Aaron Obobaifo all missing time this week.

The deeper Saskatoon and Edmonton go into the series, the more conditioning and endurance play a factor according to Mathies.

“I think it’s huge having four lines that can go,” Mathies said.

“Some players are playing 20, 22 minutes a game. That’s hard on the body, but if you have good endurance it helps in the end of the series.”

Embracing their physicality will be a key talking point for the Blades in Edmonton, with their best play of the series coming over the first three games with a combination of reliable five-on-five play and an ability to get into the corners.

DaSilva said it will be that style of hockey needed to earn the victory on the road and return to Saskatoon for Game 6 with a 3-2 series lead.

“We’ve shown that if we’re at our best we can compete with this team,” DaSilva said.

“We can beat this team, so that’s the belief part we’re selling the guys on and they know it, too.”

The Blades and Oil Kings meet at Rogers Place on Friday with a 6 p.m. puck drop for Game 6.