The last thing a team wants to do in a playoff series is give their opponent hope. Any doors that are ajar need to be closed immediately.
The Florida Panthers had two opportunities to shut out the Edmonton Oilers and win their first Stanley Cup title. But Sergei Bobrovsky is out of the game (.769 save percentage) and Connor McDavid used Games 4 and 5 to show everyone that his team is not will go down without a fight – and that he can carry them all the way in this series with back-to-back four-point nights.
McDavid said before Game 5 in Florida that the Oilers wanted to drag the Panthers “back to Alberta.” That meant another game and another 2,500-mile flight.
He got his wish, and while Panthers coach Paul Maurice can say there’s also pressure on Edmonton right now, his team is one that doesn’t want to lose a third game in a row and leave the series to a winner. the entire Game 7 that could have unfortunate historical consequences for their franchise.
“When you have nothing to lose, there is freedom in that. When you have something to protect, sometimes you feel the pressure to protect it,” Maurice said Thursday. “So now there is a night out in this series. I think the pressure is closer [between us].”
The Panthers will remain confident heading into Friday’s Game 6 (8 p.m. ET; ABC). The Stanley Cup will be at Rogers Place awaiting presentation to the Panthers if they win. The Oilers saw from them confidence grew with two big wins and their captain – McDavid – playing at his usual otherworldly level.
Small mistakes are magnified on this stage, and the Panthers know what areas they need to improve in to get back to the way they played earlier in the series. Florida pushed to get back into Game 5 without success, but the players realized that despite the effects of the score, they did not completely lose the game.
“We’re that team. I mean, we’ve been that team all year,” Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk said. “We’ve had a little bit of a lapse in Game 4 here for a period and a half. But for the most part, we’ve been pretty consistent with that. We really like our 5-on-5 game. We’re comfortable against anyone in the world with that.”
Only one NHL team – the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs – has won the Cup after losing 3-0 in the Cup Final. The Oilers aim to be the second to achieve this.
“There is no group more prepared for the moment than this one,” McDavid said.
2024 Stanley Cup Final Schedule (Panthers main series 3-2)
Game 1: Panthers 3, Oilers 0
Game 2: Panthers 4, Oilers 1
Game 3: Panthers 4, Oilers 3
Game 4: Oilers 8, Panthers 1
Game 5: Oilers 5, Panthers 3
Game 6: Panthers at Oilers | Friday, June 21, 8 p.m. ET (ABC, ESPN+)
*Game 7: Lubricators in Panteras | Monday, June 24, 8 p.m. ET (ABC, ESPN+)
(*if necessary)
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