PROJECTED LINEUP: Pickard getting the start in Game 5 against the Panthers

EDMONTON, AB – After taking over the crease in relief on Thursday to make 22 saves in Edmonton's 5-4 overtime victory over Florida, goaltender Calvin Pickard will tend the twine for the Oilers in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Panthers on Saturday at Rogers Place with the series tied at 2-2.

"It's exciting. A good opportunity for me," Pickard said. "It feels like another game for me. Obviously, getting the time in the last game, not having much time to think about it and not having much room for error, our team really battled back, and getting a win gives you some confidence."

"The building is going to be electric tonight. It's definitely going to be an exciting day."

Pickard came in to replace Stuart Skinner with the Oilers trailing 3-0 to begin the second period of Game 4 on Thursday against the Panthers, and the 33-year-old's takeover wound up sparking his team's comeback victory, making a handful of excellent saves that included his breakaway save on Anton Lundell in the second period and a game-defining stop on centre Sam Bennett in overtime before Leon Draisaitl's fourth OT goal clinched Edmonton the 5-4 victory.

"We have extreme confidence in him, and he saved my butt once there," said defenceman Jake Walman, who committed the turnover that led to Lundell's breakaway chance. "So I'm proud of him for that, and he made some huge saves. We wouldn't have won that game without him, for sure. It's huge. That was a huge swing game there. It's either 3-2 or 2-2, so we like our chances. We're at home now and we gotta get off to a better start than last time."

The Oilers would've likely been facing a 3-1 deficit in the Final heading into tonight's Game 5 if it weren't for the netminder, who's an incredible 7-0 with a 2.69 GAA and .896 SV% in nine games played this postseason after he made 23 saves to help his side even the series going back to Oil Country.

After Pickard earned the result on Thursday by making several huge saves, Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said that was one of the main factors in giving him the start tonight over Skinner, who was pulled after the first period in Game 4 despite playing solid with three goals allowed on 17 shots in an attempt by the Oilers bench boss to spark an Oilers comeback.

"It wasn't an easy call because we've got two good goaltenders," Knoblauch said. 'Stu has come in and played some really big games, especially later in the series. But I think the deciding factor for us was that Picks won the previous game and made a lot of big saves. That was probably the deciding factor in one, why we won, but also how well he played to get the net again."

For Pickard, tonight feels like just another start for him after he's gone about his business throughout the regular season and playoffs to prepare himself for whenever he's called upon, having gone on long spells without seeing game action while also owning the crease for extended stretches.

The Oilers netminder came in for Skinner after the first two games of the First Round against Los Angeles and dominated to the tune of six straight victories, only to suffer a lower-body injury in Game 2 of the Second Round against Vegas that led to Skinner retaking the crease and making the next 12 starts.

Speaking at the podium pre-game on Saturday beside forward Evander Kane, Pickard said his routine doesn't change whether it's Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final or a regular season game in the middle of the year in January, which is something he's developed over his long and difficult career journey.

"There have been a lot of stops along the way," he said. "I guess you could look at tonight as the biggest game of my life, but the last game is the biggest game of my life until the next one. So it's rinse and repeat for me. It's been a great journey. I've been to a lot of good places. I'm grateful that I had the chance to come to Edmonton a couple of years ago, and this is what it's all about. I'm definitely excited.

Inside the locker room, that steady approach from Pickard translates to the rest of the group, and the Oilers players and coaches are grateful to have his veteran presence to lean on after he's battled his way up the ladder to earn a vital start in the Stanley Cup Final with his team deadlocked in a 2-2 series.

"He's a really popular guy in the room," Evander Kane said. "You know, he's got a great sense of humour. He keeps things light. He's been doing this for a long time. He has a ton of experience. He's been in a lot of different dressing rooms, and that can also help you along the way when you do come into different teams, making a little bit of an easier transition. Ever since he arrived and I arrived, he's been fantastic. Now, you're just seeing that off-ice stuff translate onto the ice with his performances and how much he's helped our group get us to where we are today. We definitely love playing in front of him."

McDavid added: "He's someone who's just kind of stuck with it all the way and he's been a true pro and a great person. "I think good people get rewarded, and he's a good person and works as hard as I've ever seen a guy work, so he couldn't be more deserving of the role and the opportunity he's got."

Coach Knoblauch will make one further change to his lineup by swapping out winger Kasperi Kapanen for Viktor Arvidsson to give the Oilers a fresher set of legs after having only one day between Games 4 & 5 to make the long trip back to Edmonton from Sunrise. Troy Stecher will stay in the lineup as Edmonton's sixth defenceman over John Klingberg.

Arvidsson will skate on a line with Evander Kane and Mattias Janmark and had produced points in three straight games before Game 3 of the Final, bringing his playoff total up to two goals and five assists in 14 games this postseason.

"Viktor was pulled out and wasn't in the lineup, but was that fair?" Knoblauch said. "We talked about how things are fair and not fair. But the privilege I have is having a lot of good hockey players and not being able to put them in the lineup. Here we have a fresh guy who didn't play the previous game. Our team has travelled, and we feel that Viktor's in a position to help us.

"Throughout the playoffs, he's played really well. Just because of circumstances, whether we needed more physicality or more of a penalty kill guy, whatever it is, he was pulled out of the lineup. But Viktor's an excellent hockey player and we feel that he'll give us a good game tonight."

View the Oilers Projected Game 5 Lineup vs. Florida below:

Nugent-Hopkins - McDavid - Brown
Podkolzin - Draisaitl - Perry
Skinner - Henrique - Frederic
Kane - Janmark - Arvidsson

Ekholm - Walman
Nurse - Stecher
Kulak - Bouchard

Pickard
Skinner