As the Edmonton Oilers face possible elimination from the playoffs Tuesday night, they may have to do so without star center Connor McDavid, a game-time decision due to an ankle injury.

McDavid sustained the injury to his right ankle in Game 2 and continued to play but has appeared limited.

The 29-year-old captain has one goal and three assists in the series after leading the league with 138 points (48 goals, 90 assists) in 82 games during the regular season.

The two-time defending Western Conference champion Oilers are down 3-1 in the best-of-seven first-round series against the Anaheim Ducks, who visit Edmonton on Tuesday night for Game 5 looking for their first series win in nine years.

Anaheim has won three in a row after blowing a late lead and dropping the series opener 4-3 on April 20.

The Oilers may also be without fellow center Jason Dickinson, who missed Games 2 and 3 with a lower-body injury before returning for Game 4. Dickinson is also a game-time decision.

–Field Level Media

The Anaheim Ducks are one victory away from winning their first Stanley Cup playoff series in nine years.

Finishing off the two-time defending Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers, especially on the road, won’t come easily.

The Ducks own a 3-1 edge in the best-of-seven first-round series heading into Game 5 on Tuesday night.

Anaheim has won three in a row after blowing a late lead and dropping the series opener 4-3 on April 20.

The Ducks answered back with a 6-4 win last Wednesday and a 7-4 victory Friday. Overtime was needed Sunday before the Ducks came away with a 4-3 victory.

“We’re up 3-1, and every game has been a toss-up,” Ducks coach Joel Quenneville said. “Hanging in there and finding different ways, different guys against an excellent hockey team. We’re in a position now to look ahead and only think of one game.”

Quenneville is well aware that the Oilers have made a habit of coming back during the playoffs in recent years. They lost the first two games of their first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings last season before winning four straight.

Two years ago, Edmonton came back from 2-1 series deficits in the second and third rounds and then dropped the first three games of the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers before forcing a Game 7.

“We’re in a hole, no doubt about it,” Oilers star Connor McDavid said. “We have to find a way to get a win at home.”

McDavid, who led the NHL with 138 points during the regular season, hasn’t been as dangerous since tweaking his right ankle in Game 2. He did manage to produce two points in each of the past two games after going scoreless in the first two, however.

“We’re all doing the best we can out there,” McDavid said. “We’re all working and trying to get it done.”

The Oilers may have to get it done without their biggest star. McDavid is a game-time decision for Tuesday night as he continues to deal with the ankle injury. Fellow center Jason Dickinson, who missed Games 2 and 3 with a lower-body injury before returning for Game 4, is also a game-time decision.

Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch likely will start Tristan Jarry in goal for the second straight game.

Jarry started Game 4 in place of Connor Ingram, who surrendered 14 goals on 93 shots in the first three games of the series (.849).

Jarry made 34 saves in his first postseason start since a 4-3 loss to the New York Rangers in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference first round on May 15, 2022, when he played for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“Tristan played really well,” Knoblauch said. “Two of the goals, one went off our defenseman’s stick and the other was an unfortunate bounce that went off a skate. He made some big saves, and that’s what we wanted from him, a solid performance, and he played well. “

On the other side, Lukas Dostal played his best game of the series, making 24 saves. He used the blade of his right skate to turn away McDavid after he got behind the defense in the final minutes of regulation.

“He’s the rock of our team,” Ducks forward Cutter Gauthier said of Dostal. “It doesn’t really surprise me how well he performs in high-pressure situations like that.”

The Ducks will also look to stay hot on the power play, which is 6-for-12 in the series.

“Our execution has been excellent,” Anaheim defenseman Jackson LaCombe said. “Similar to our 5-on-5 play, we’ve been working more and recovering more pucks, being in better spots for each other and being more available. That’s leading to more time and success, too.”

–Field Level Media

The Baltimore Ravens signed Heisman Trophy runner-up Diego Pavia, formerly of Vanderbilt, and ex-UConn quarterback Joe Fagnano to three-year contracts as undrafted free agents on Tuesday, multiple outlets reported.

Both players had been invited to attend the team’s rookie mini-camp later this week but now have spots on the team’s 90-man roster, which will be pared to 53 before the season begins.

They join a quarterback room that consists of starter Lamar Jackson, a two-time NFL Most Valuable Player, and backup Tyler Huntley.

Pavia, 24, is a dual-threat quarterback, throwing for 3,539 yards and 29 touchdowns and rushing for 862 yards and 10 more touchdowns last season. He was intercepted eight times.

Pavia was the first Heisman finalist to go undrafted since 2014, when no team selected Northern Illinois quarterback Jordan Lynch. Pavia was the first Heisman runner-up to be unselected since Iowa quarterback Brad Banks in 2003.

He spent his first two college season at New Mexico State, the final two at Vanderbilt.

One of the knocks on Pavis is his size — he measured 5-foot-10 and 207 pounds at the NFL Scouting Combine in late February. The other is his maturity level, which has been likened to former Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel.

Fagnano measured 6-3 1/4 and 226 pounds. He will enter the NFL at age 25 after seven seasons in college due to injury redshirts and the extra COVID-19 season. He spent four seasons at Maine and three at UConn.

Last season, Fagnano finished with 3,448 yards, 28 TDs and one interception with a 161.03 passing efficiency rating. He was the only FBS quarterback with more than 200 pass attempts to have just one pass picked off. He led UConn to a 9-3 regular-season record before deciding to sit out the Fenway Bowl.

In 51 career games, Fagnano recorded 10,926 yards passing, 94 touchdowns and 18 interceptions.

In 53 games. Pavia had 10,255 passing yards, 88 touchdowns and 27 interceptions. He etched his name into Vanderbilt lore by guiding the Commodores to an upset of No. 1 Alabama during the 2024 season, the school’s first-ever victory over a Top 5 program.

Rushing, Pavia ran for 1,663 yards and 18 scores in his two seasons at Vanderbilt. Fagnano, more of a pocket passer, ran for 223 yards and four TDs in the UConn portion of his career.

–Field Level Media