McDavid and the Oilers drag Panthers back to Edmonton for a Stanley Cup Final Game 6

Connor McDavid wanted the Edmonton Oilers to drag the Florida Panthers back to Alberta, then did everything he could to make that happen.

McDavid scored twice, including the empty-netter to seal the score, and set up two goals to keep the Stanley Cup Final going with a 5-3 win in Game 5 Tuesday night, elimination will be avoided and the series will be sent all the way back across North America. Game 6 is Friday in Edmonton.

“I like playing in the playoffs,” McDavid said. I love playing with this group. It was a fun ride and we were glad it would last another day. But that's all we've earned here: another day, another flight. Make sure you're ready to go to Edmonton on Friday.

With consecutive four-point performances, McDavid joined Wayne Gretzky in 1985 as the only players to have four or more in two games of a finals. His eight over this period is the most by a player in consecutive games for a team on the brink.

Connor does Connor things, said linemate Zach Hyman, who scored his 15th goal of the playoffs with an assist from McDavid. That's what makes him special. He can take his game to the next level in the most important moment, the biggest reason why we have come this far. Weren't here without him. He continues to drive the bus.

Drag 'em back to Alberta became the Oilers' rallying cry, started by McDavid after leading the way in avoiding a sweep and echoed by Connor Brown hours before the puck dropped in Sunrise. Brown, the other Connor, scored short-handed five minutes later after Stuart Skinner made a number of big saves over the first few shifts as the Panthers opened with a strong push in their second chance to win the cup.

That will have to wait thanks to Edmonton's power play that was 0 for the series at 5 on 4 and built the lead with goals from Hyman and Corey Perry, each assisted by McDavid.

He puts this team on his back, Perry said. When we stand against the wall, he puts us on his back and plays. You can see why he is the best player.

Retired referee Kerry Fraser, who played in the finals 12 times during his long career, posted on social media: Connor McDavid reminds me of how Mark Messier could take over a play-off game and ultimately a series. Fraser was referring to Messier carrying the Oilers to the Cup in 1990, the franchise's last championship, which capped that dynasty's run of five in seven years.

McDavid now has 42 points on this run. Only Gretzky (twice) and Mario Lemieux have more in a single postseason. His 42nd into the empty net with 19 seconds left set off the Oilers' victory song, La Bamba, playing all over Edmonton.

We believe, said fan Trevor Savage after watching Game 5. We all knew it was possible. We knew Connor could lead us. We knew the team would be ready and were just excited about Game 6 at home.

McDavid didn't do the towing himself.

Brown's goal marked the first time since the 1991 Pittsburgh Penguins (Mario Lemieux and Bob Errey) that Edmonton has scored short-handed in back-to-back games in the finals. And Skinner, whose play will be in the series seemed the greatest uncertaintystopped 29 of the 32 shots he faced.

Meanwhile, the Oilers reached Sergei Bobrovsky again, three nights later chase him out of Game 4 an 8-1 defeat at halftime. Especially McDavid's goal Tuesday night from a tight angle, a soft one to give up by the goaltender everyone just calls Bob.

A more shaky Bobrovsky when the series returns to Edmonton could set the stage for a comeback not seen in more than 80 years. The Oilers became only the third team in Cup Final history and the first since New Jersey in 2012 to fall behind 3-0 and win the next two games, and the only team to come all the way back to win it all was the Toronto Maple from 1942. Leaves.

It's been a crazy story all year, Hyman said. We must continue writing it. It doesn't make for a good story unless you finish it.

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AP NHL Playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup And https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL