The Vancouver Canucks hoped to win Game 7 and advance to the Western Conference Finals. Vancouver had not advanced to the West Final since 2011. And after a brutal Game 6 loss, they believed they could turn in a better performance in the winner-take-all contest. Unfortunately, they could not overcome the Edmonton Oilers on Monday night.

The Oilers defeated the Canucks 3-2 in Game 7. As a result, Vancouver's season is now over. It was a successful year for the Western Canadian franchise. They won the Pacific Division, claiming home-ice advantage through the first two rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. And they came within a win of the Western Conference Finals.

Vancouver had a rough Game 7 against the Oilers. In fact, at the halfway point of the game, they had just five shots on goal. But they made a game of it in the third period. And while some fanbases would express disappointment at the performance, Canucks fans gave their players a standing ovation after the Game 7 loss.

Canucks fall short in Game 7

Edmonton Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm (14) and defenseman Evan Bouchard (2) and goalie Stuart Skinner (74) celebrate their victory over the Vancouver Canucks in game seven of the second round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Arena.
Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports

Vancouver kept the Oilers off the scoresheet in the first period. However, they failed to generate any offense of their own in the opening frame. And to make matters worse, Edmonton didn't a lot of time to breakthrough in the second period. Defenseman Cody Ceci scored his first of the Stanley Cup Playoffs to make it 1-0.

From there, Edmonton took over. Around six minutes into the period, the visitors doubled their lead. Zach Hyman scored his 11th of the postseason to make it 2-0 in favor of the Oilers. Later on in the period, Edmonton went on the power play. There, it was Ryan Nugent-Hopkins who found the back of the net.

The Canucks had their backs against the wall entering the third period. But they did find their game halfway through the period. Veteran forward Conor Garland scored off of a turnover to put Vancouver on the board. And defenseman Filip Hronek scored with less than five minutes to go to cut the deficit to one. Unfortunately, it was too little too late.

The Oilers won Game 7 and advanced to the Western Conference Finals. This marks their second appearance in the West Final in three seasons. This year, they take on the Dallas Stars. Dallas defeated the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche en route to the 2024 West Final.