The Edmonton Oilers will look to continue what they hope is a historic comeback in the Stanley Cup Finals on Tuesday as they return to Florida for a date with…
McDavid, Oilers Wow NHL Fans with G4 Win vs. Tkachuk, Panthers to Avoid Finals Sweep
Jun 16, 2024
EDMONTON, CANADA - JUNE 15: Mattias Janmark #13 and Adam Henrique #19 of the Edmonton Oilers celebrate after Henrique's goal against the Florida Panthers during the first period of Game Four of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Place on June 15, 2024 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
The Edmonton Oilers solved Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky just in time to save their season.
The Oilers chased Bobrovsky in the second period on their way to a 8-1 victory in Game 4 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals.
The final will now go back to Florida for Game 5. The Panthers still lead the series, 3-1.
McDavid now has 32 assists in 22 playoff games this summer, beating out Wayne Gretzky's effort in 1988 for the most helpers in a single NHL postseason.
CONNOR MCDAVID HAS BROKEN THE RECORD FOR MOST ASSISTS IN A SINGLE POSTSEASON 🍎🚨 pic.twitter.com/MA6q8giUXf
#Oilers Connor McDavid set a new #NHL record tonight for most assists in a single playoff with 32.
If you wanted a Gretzky-like stat, consider this one: McDavid has as many assists these playoffs as 16 of the 18 postseason leaders in the salary cap era had total points.
McDavid is the best player I’ve ever seen in my lifetime. I’ve watched a lot of the stars from the early 2000’s to present in person. He’s the best https://t.co/zhnfQV9aZ5
Fans were also impressed with the team's overall performance as Mattias Janmark, Zach Hyman and Dylan Holloway each joined the Oilers' stars with multipoint nights.
Edmonton with seven different goal scorers and 15 players with points. Skinner stops 32 of 33 shots. McDavid sets new playoff record with 32 assists in one postseason. Dominant 8-1 performance. Now they have to have a repeat strong performance in Game 5.
The Oilers were forced to kill off a penalty early in the first period, but Janmark kept the home crowd in the game with a shorthanded goal to open scoring.
Halfway through the first period, Vladimir Tarasenko scored to cut the Edmonton lead in half and threaten a Panthers comeback.
The Oilers responded with five straight goals, including a second-period strike from Darnell Nurse that led the Panthers to pull Bobrovsky in favor of Anthony Stolarz.
Edmonton's ability to finally solve Bobrovsky, against whom they had previously been held to just four goals in three games, led some fans to believe the Oilers could pull off a historic reverse sweep:
Oilers 8-1 win sets the record for the largest margin of victory by a NHL team facing elimination in the Stanley Cup Final.
Previous record: Maple Leafs 9-3 win over the Red Wings in Game 5 of the 1942 Stanley Cup Final.
The Oilers pushing this series to even 6 games seems unlikely but they did just chase Bob. Maybe they start believing and shake Florida’s confidence. https://t.co/ctZyEoXuyy
McDavid will look to drive his team to another victory as the Oilers hit the road for another must-win game this week.
The Panthers will meanwhile have the chance to win the Stanley Cup at home when the series returns to Sunrise on Tuesday.
Connor McDavid Breaks Wayne Gretzky's NHL Record for Assists in Single Playoff Run
Jun 16, 2024
EDMONTON, CANADA - JUNE 15: Connor McDavid #97 of the Edmonton Oilers reacts after scoring a goal against the Florida Panthers during the second period of Game Four of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Place on June 15, 2024 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
Connor McDavid passed some really elite company on Saturday night.
The Edmonton Oilers captain broke the record set by Wayne Gretzky for most assists in a single postseason during the Oilers Game 4 matchup against the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final.
CONNOR MCDAVID HAS BROKEN THE RECORD FOR MOST ASSISTS IN A SINGLE POSTSEASON 🍎🚨 pic.twitter.com/MA6q8giUXf
The record was broken on his third assist of the night, which came on a Dylan Holloway goal in the third period of the Oilers 8-1 victory over the Panthers. This broke Gretzky's mark from 1987, when he had 31 for the Oilers.
The third assist was McDavid's 32nd of the postseason, and his four points on the night gave him 38 points during the playoffs. That leads the entire league and he is just nine points behind Gretzky's all-time record of 48 from the 1984-85 season.
For Edmonton to win the Stanley Cup, McDavid may need to break that record. While Game 4's victory was significant, it was the team's first victory in the series. Edmonton now trails Florida 3-1 in the series, and need to perform to a similar caliber for the remainder of the series.
Only one team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in the Stanley Cup final round. That came in 1942 postseason, when the Toronto Maple Leafs completed a reverse sweep on the Detroit Red Wings.
The last time a team overcame a 3-0 deficit in general was in the 2014 first round when the Los Angeles Kings knocked down the San Jose Sharks
Oilers' Mattias Ekholm Says Team Can Make Historic Stanley Cup Rally vs. Panthers
Jun 14, 2024
SUNRISE, FL - JUNE 10: Edmonton Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm (14) scores on a breakaway opportunity in the first period during game two of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers on Saturday, June 10, 2024 at Amerant Bank Area in Sunrise, Fla. (Photo by Peter Joneleit/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Edmonton defenseman Mattias Ekholm believes that the Oilers can become the first NHL team in 82 years to recover from a 3-0 series deficit in the Stanley Cup Final.
"I feel like through three games, have we deserved to win a game? I think so. I think we've played two at least pretty good games," Ekholm said Friday, per ESPN's Greg Wyshynski. "It hasn't happened for us, but it is four games.
"We had stretches of eight games and 16 games throughout the regular season. We won three straight against Dallas. So we can do it. It's a matter of just finding that first win and go from there."
The Oilers launched a late comeback attempt Thursday but couldn't find the tying goal in Game 3, conceding a 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers at home.
Edmonton is now 0-5 against Florida this season, including two regular-season regulation losses.
The only team to ever recover from an 0-3 series deficit in the Stanley Cup Final was the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, a team led by Syl Apps to a historic rally against the Detroit Red Wings.
A reverse sweep has only ever been completed three other times in the history of the NHL playoffs. The most recent recovery was in 2014, when Jonathan Quick backstopped the Los Angeles Kings to a first-round comeback against the San Jose Sharks. The Kings went on to win the Stanley Cup.
The Oilers outshot the Panthers in Games 1 and 3, and have overall put up 86 shots to the Panthers' 70 through three games. Ekholm himself scored the opening goal of Game 2 to give Edmonton its first lead of the series.
But defensive snafus and struggles from Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner meant the Oilers couldn't hold onto that early advantage.
Edmonton has overall been held to just four goals through three games, with stars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have yet to score against Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky.
Bobrovsky's .953 save percentage ranks as the sixth-highest recorded through the first three games of a Stanley Cup Final in NHL history, per TSN's SportsCentre.
The Oilers' hopes of a comeback will center on McDavid figuring out how to beat Bobrovsky, while Draisaitl looks to snap his first three-game stretch without a point since March 2020.
Ekholm isn't the only Edmonton player who has professed his belief the series could go to seven games. Wyshynski reported that Skinner, as well as forwards Corey Perry and Zach Hyman, all said they believed the Oilers could launch a historic comeback when the puck drops in Edmonton for Game 4 Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.
The Florida Panthers jumped on the Edmonton Oilers early and often in the first two games of the Stanley Cup Finals, eager to put the heartbreak and…
Oilers' Connor McDavid 'Looking Forward' to Doubters amid 0-2 SCF Deficit to Panthers
Jun 11, 2024
SUNRISE, FL - JUNE 10: Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid (97) looks to make a pass after being cut off in the third period during game two of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers on Saturday, June 10, 2024 at Amerant Bank Area in Sunrise, Fla. (Photo by Peter Joneleit/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Edmonton Oilers superstar forward Connor McDavid is embracing his team's role as the underdog after falling behind 2-0 in the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers.
Speaking to reporters Monday night following Edmonton's 4-1 loss to Florida in Game 2, McDavid said he is "looking forward to people doubting us again."
“I’m excited to see us fight through adversity and looking forward to people doubting us again."
While the Oilers are making their first Stanley Cup Final appearance since 2006, the Panthers are in the SCF for a second consecutive year and are now two wins away from the first Stanley Cup win in franchise history.
While the Oilers are now the clear underdogs in the Stanley Cup Final, they have bore the burden of high expectations ever since they took McDavid first overall in the 2015 NHL draft.
Edmonton has reached the playoffs six times since McDavid's arrival, but it wasn't until this season that the team finally broke through with a Stanley Cup Final appearance.
Along with fellow superstar forward Leon Draisaitl, McDavis is unquestionably the biggest reason for the Oilers' success, as the 27-year-old veteran reached the 100-point mark for the seventh time in the past eight seasons with 32 goals and a league-leading 100 assists for 132 points.
He has continued his spectacular play during the postseason as well, registering five goals and a playoff-leading 27 assists and 32 points.
As much as fans and observers expected McDavid and the Oilers to go on a deep run prior to the season, expectations were quickly tempered early in the campaign when Edmonton got off to a 2-9-1 start.
That led to the firing of head coach Jay Woodcroft, which proved to be the right move for Edmonton, as the team went 46-18-5 under Kris Knoblauch the rest of the way.
As has always been the case during McDavid's tenure, a high-powered offense carried the Oilers to a 104-point regular season, as they were fourth in the NHL with 294 goals scored.
The offense has gone away for the Oilers thus far in the Stanley Cup Final, as they have gotten only one puck past Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky over two games on a combined 51 shots on goal.
Florida has scored seven times in that same stretch, further underscoring Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner's struggles during the playoffs, as he has compiled a pedestrian .896 save percentage.
The Oilers are never out of it with McDavid leading the way, but they clearly have an uphill climb ahead of them against a stacked Panthers team with plenty of firepower Stanley Cup Final experience.
Although a loss won't officially end their season, Thursday's Game 3 already feels like a must-win situation for the Oilers since coming back from a 3-0 deficit seems like a near impossibility.
Well, folks, for the first time in the Connor McDavid Era, the Edmonton Oilers are headed to the Stanley Cup Final. McDavid set the tone with a power play…
Connor McDavid, Oilers Beat Stars to Reach 2024 Stanley Cup Final; NHL Fans Thrilled
Jun 3, 2024
EDMONTON, AB - JUNE 2: The Edmonton Oilers win the Western Conference and pose for a photo with the Campbell Conference Bowl at the end of game six of the Western Conference Final Round Edmonton Oilers game versus the Dallas Stars on June 2, 2024 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, AB. (Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
With a chance to advance to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in his career on the line, Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid refused to be denied.
McDavid set the tone early, scoring a nifty goal less than five minutes into Sunday's Game 6 of the Western Conference Final against the Dallas Stars and assisted Zach Hyman's goal later in the opening period to lead the Oilers to a 2-1 victory.
It's Edmonton's first trip to the Stanley Cup Final since the 2005-06 season and eighth in franchise history. The team will meet the Florida Panthers, who won the Eastern Conference for the third straight year by defeating the New York Rangers in six games. Florida is seeking its first Stanley Cup title in franchise history, while Edmonton is chasing its sixth overall and first since the 1989-90 campaign.
McDavid's early attack proved to pay dividends as the Oilers staved off a furious attack from the Stars, who were looking to extend their season by forcing a Game 7. Dallas out-shot Edmonton 35-10 in Sunday's contest. The 10 shots on goal by Edmonton were the fewest in a series-clinching effort in conference finals history. Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner was a brick wall in the net, finishing with 34 saves and one goal allowed in the third period.
Fans on social media were blown away by the effort from McDavid and the Oilers as they finally broke through to win a conference title:
Edmonton's 10 shots were fewest in a Conference Finals clincher. Previous: 17 by Boston when knocking out Washington in the 1990 Wales Conference Final.
Worst shot differential by a winning team in Conference Finals clincher, minus-25 (35-10).…
McDavid already has a legendary career that includes five Art Ross Trophies, four Ted Lindsay Awards and three Hart Memorial Trophies. The only thing missing is a Stanley Cup title, and he put himself in a position to earn his first championship with a stellar performance on Sunday.
McDavid and the Oilers will meet the Panthers in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday.
Connor McDavid, Oilers Celebrated By NHL Fans for Taking WCF Series Lead vs. Stars
Jun 1, 2024
DALLAS, TEXAS - MAY 31: Philip Broberg #86 of the Edmonton Oilers celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the Dallas Stars during the second period in Game Five of the Western Conference Final of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at American Airlines Center on May 31, 2024 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
The Edmonton Oilers are one win away from the first Stanley Cup Final of the Connor McDavid era.
The Oilers defeated the Dallas Stars 3-1 on the road Friday night to take a 3-2 Western Conference Finals lead.
Connor McDavid one win away from a Stanley Cup Final. What a time to be alive
Nugent-Hopkins' best performance of the playoffs came after Leon Draisaitl praised him before the game.
"Have you guys ever seen him make a mistake? I really haven't," Draisaitl said before the win, per NHL Network. "He's just such a smart, good hockey player, and I think he's probably the coach's favorite player in the world."
Nugent-Hopkins' Friday performance led fans to agree with Draisaitl's assessment:
Philip Broberg, who was placed on waivers in November and was skating in his second playoff game of the season, contributed to the Oilers' lead with the first playoff goal of his career.
BRO!! It's Broberg RIGHT off the faceoff, and it's 3-0 Oilers in the 2nd period 😱 pic.twitter.com/QZwZqjOrJW
Stuart Skinner hasn't had to work hard most of the game. But he's made several big saves late in the second and early in the third, Stankoven's the latest. #EDMvsDAL#TexasHockey
The Stars, one of the best road teams in the NHL during the regular season, will now need one more win on enemy ice in order to extend their postseason.
The puck drops for Game 6 in Edmonton Sunday at 8 p.m. ET.
Connor McDavid, Oilers Beat Stars in WCF Game 4, Hyped By NHL Fans for Tying Series
May 30, 2024
EDMONTON, CANADA - MAY 29: Evan Bouchard #2 of the Edmonton Oilers celebrates his first-period goal against the Dallas Stars with teammate Connor McDavid #97 in Game Four of the Western Conference Final of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place on May 29, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)
The Dallas Stars came into Wednesday night's Game 4 with a 2-1 series lead in the Western Conference Final. Less than six minutes into the game, they held a 2-0 lead.
And then the Edmonton Oilers erupted.
The home team promptly rattled off five unanswered goals, winning 5-2 and evening the series at two games apiece.
Ryan McLeod and Evan Bouchard struck back in the second period, while Mattias Janmark and Leon Draisaitl gave the Oilers the lead for good.
Mattias Ekholm scored an empty-netter late in the third period to seal the deal.
Connor McDavid added two assists, bringing him up to 23 helpers during the Stanley Cup playoffs and 27 points total across 16 games. Turns out that McDavid fella is pretty good.
NHL fans and pundits gave him his flowers after the game, per usual, but in general the Oilers impressed the hockey world—and had it a little bit dizzy, quite frankly—with their resilient and explosive performance:
Dallas is 0-for-9 on the power play in this series. The Oilers have killed 41 of 44 penalties this postseason, including 23 straight. #DALvsEDM#TexasHockey
Oilers had a very rough start, we all know, but mid way in the first, they pulled the momentum completely back. Pretty good effort by this group, and credit to all of them for buckling down and pulling it out of the fire for the W. Team win.
— 🇨🇦 Putting On The Foil 🏒 (@potf_racki) May 30, 2024
What a clinic put on tonight by Edmonton, they have a lot more depth than people gave them credit for. Definitely McDavid’s best shot yet at a cup this team is different. Dallas far from done yet tho also. 2 great hockey conference final series going on love it!
This series has been wild. Edmonton opened it with a double-overtime win in Game 1 and then dropped two straight contests to Dallas, which included blowing a 2-0 lead of its own in Game 3.
What goes around, comes around, apparently. The Oilers will take you on a whirlwind, up-and-down journey, but it's rarely boring. And now McDavid's crew is just two wins away from the Stanley Cup Final.
Given how this series has gone, don't be surprised if the Western Conference Final goes the distance, and in extremely dramatic fashion.
