Young Oilers head into Game 6 looking forward, not back

Twenty players on Edmonton’s roster weren’t alive the last time the Oilers won a Stanley Cup. And many of them were in grade school the last time the team made the playoffs.

So although they go into Sunday’s game with the Anaheim Ducks trailing the best-of-seven playoff series 3-2, they’ve already accomplished more than a decade’s worth of Oilers teams. And they have a chance to accomplish more since a win would bring the series back to Anaheim on Wednesday for a deciding Game 7.

In each of the last four years, the Ducks have led a playoff series, 3-2, only to lose Game 6 on the road and Game 7 at home. That’s a piece of history the Oilers are hanging on to.

“It’s an opportunity,” Edmonton coach Todd McLellan said after Sunday morning’s brief practice.

A piece of history the Oilers are trying to forget? The 2-0 and 3-0 leads they blew in the last two games, including a historic collapse Friday when they allowed three goals in the final 3:16 before losing in two overtimes.

“We can’t change the outcome, so we’re done talking about it. We’ve got to focus on Game 6,” forward Patrick Maroon said.

“Everyone’s feeling positive. We’re still in a great situation. We’re playing on home ice. It’s 3-2. If anything we’re in a good situation.”

Added forward Leon Draisaitl, one of 11 Oilers to make his postseason debut this spring: “If we’re not confident, then what are we doing here? We’re a confident group, and it’s one game. We win this game, and then it goes to the last game.”

However, it will be an exhausted group that will take the ice Sunday. The Oilers are especially thin in defenseman after Andrej Sekera went out with an injury after playing less than two minutes in Game 5. As a result, Adam Larsson skated 59 shifts and nearly 45 minutes Friday.

Yet even with Edmonton entering Sunday on the brink of elimination, veteran Mark Letestu — at 32, the second-oldest player on the team — said the young Oilers have gotten here ahead of schedule.

“Not that we’re playing with house money right now, but I don’t think anybody’s expectations were that we would be where we are now,” he said. “As we’ve gone, there’s presented new obstacles for us, and we’ve kind of passed all of those hurdles.

“I think everybody’s just so proud of the team after being out of the playoffs so long. They’ve kind of embraced what we represent and that’s the community and the people around here. They’re proud of us now.”

kevin.baxter@latimes.com

Twitter: kbaxter11