Edmonton Oilers vs. Florida Panthers - June 12, 2025
Rodrigues scored a goal and an assist Monday, both on the power play, in the Panthers' 6-1 win over the Oilers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
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USA Today
33 minutes ago
- USA Today
5 shots of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce canoodling at Oilers-Panthers
5 shots of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce canoodling at Oilers-Panthers The Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers put on an absolute show on Thursday night as the Oilers picked up a much-needed win in the Stanley Cup Final to take Game 4 in dramatic fashion. The reigning champion Panthers tied the game at 4-4 with 19 seconds left in the third period, but would go on to lose in overtime. Among the crowd for the immediate classic was celebrity couple Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce. The singer and Kansas City tight end were in Florida to take in the game, and the pair could not have seemed happier throughout the evening. Swift and Kelce have been dating since summer of 2023, and they were seen being affectionate with each other throughout the evening. Cameras caught the 14-time Grammy winner and the 3-time Super Bowl champ canoodling, laughing and overall just enjoying each other's company. Both were thrilled at the exciting finish of the game, and the NHL playoffs are just the latest in the couple's sporty run. Kelce and Swift made it to both tennis and baseball in the last couple years, and Swift has, unsurprisingly, been a mainstay at NFL games as she supports her beau. Kelce will kick off his 13th NFL season this year, so Swift's sports fan era will keep going strong.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
After another Stanley Cup Final goalie benching, NHL netminders discuss the dreaded yank: ‘A brutal feeling'
The Edmonton Oilers' comeback in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final was electrifying. It was incredible for the Oilers, who looked headed for a 3-1 series hole after an abysmal first period and instead will return home for Game 5 with the series tied. It was incredible for Leon Draisaitl, who added to his legend by scoring his second overtime winner of this Cup Final alone, sending Edmonton to a 5-4 victory. It was incredible for the thousands of Oilers faithful back in Edmonton, who partied well into Thursday night outside of Rogers Place. Advertisement There is one player for whom it was less incredible, though. Goaltender Stuart Skinner was the biggest reason this miraculous comeback was even possible in the first place. He made several key saves in the first period while the Panthers dominated over the first 20 minutes. He was the Oilers' best player, standing tall in the crease to keep the deficit to only three goals. His reward? One of the most embarrassing moments any goalie will face: the dreaded yank. Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch spared Skinner the usual skate of shame, benching him for good during the second intermission after Skinner allowed three goals on 17 shots. It was the second straight game Knoblauch pulled Skinner from the net in favor of backup Calvin Pickard, and the third time he's done so this postseason. 'It's unfortunate for Stu to be pulled there,' Knoblauch said after the game. 'Our team was flat. We didn't give him any opportunities, again taking three penalties in the first period. Unfortunately we needed to change things up, and the change was great.' It's hard to lay much blame at Skinner's skates for the three goals he allowed (we'll go over that in more detail later). Rather, the decision was made to 'spark' a team that was getting thoroughly outplayed for the fourth straight period. It helps that the backup happens to be undefeated this posteason, and this time it seemed to work – to the tune of four unanswered Edmonton goals. Would the Oilers have re-focused after the intermission, and rallied for the win with Skinner still in net? We'll never know, but Pickard seems to think so. 'I felt for (Skinner) today,' Pickard said after the win. 'He came ready to play today and made some big saves early, we just didn't have it as a team early. I think (Knoblauch) just wanted to switch it up. If he was playing behind our team in the second, third and overtime he would've done what I did too.' Advertisement No goalie is immune to the yank, whether performance-related or not. Skinner hasn't played great this postseason with a .894 save percentage, but every netminder experiences it. Many times, it's through no fault of their own. It's a unique situation that unfairly punishes a player for the good of the team, but it's nothing new. Coaches have been doing it for decades, and likely will for decades to come. We thought it would be interesting to pick goalies' brains on the subject, so we asked a couple NHL netminders for their insight into the odd dynamic that has already unfolded multiple times in the Cup Final, and famously in the Western Conference Finals between Dallas and Edmonton. 'From a goalie perspective, the bottom line is you never want to get pulled,' Washington Capitals goalie Charlie Lindgren said. 'It's embarrassing. It's a brutal feeling. You always feel like you want to keep battling back.' Sometimes the pull comes because the goalie himself doesn't have his best that night, and the coach thinks a switch gives his team the best chance to get saves. That, along with giving Pickard a chance to knock some rust off after his injury, likely motivated Knoblauch to pull Skinner in Game 3. Sometimes, though, the yank is to simply send a message to the rest of the team. 'It's never easy to be the guy who's coming out of the net and the night's over with,' Lindgren said. 'That's not a fun thing to go through. Instinctually, especially for goalies at this level, there's so much heart, so much battle and so much compete. You always think that the next shot is going to be yours. You're going to find a way to keep your team in it.' Skinner was doing that on Thursday night: keeping his team in it. He made several great saves in the opening 20 minutes, and none of the goals he allowed were particularly soft. Advertisement The first was a screened shot by Florida's Matthew Tkachuk on a 5-on-3 power play from less than 20 feet away. Skinner wasn't able to see the release as he scrambled to look around two of his own players and Aleksander Barkov in front, and the save would've been tough even if he had. It's fair to criticize Skinner's rebound control on the second goal, as a shot spilled off his chest protector to Tkachuk's waiting stick in front of the net. But it was also a hard shot from point-blank range, and human reaction time has its limitations. I'd argue that on a shot from that spot, it's on the goalie to make the initial save and on the defenders to clean up the rebound, which Tkachuk instead netted for his second goal of the night. The third goal was a one-timer by Anton Lundell on the doorstep on a pass from behind the goal. There wasn't much Skinner could do on that other than what he did: gain depth, make himself big and seal any holes. Lundell placed the shot outside of Skinner's blocker and inside the left post. Having said all of that, the decision clearly worked. Pickard was good, as he's been all postseason, stopping 22 of the 23 shots he faced. He made a few timely saves — none bigger than a massive glove stop on Sam Bennett in overtime, clipping just enough of the puck to redirect the it into the crossbar moments before Draisaitl scored the winner. But Pickard wasn't the difference in the game after the goalie swap. The Oilers looked like a completely different team over the final 51 minutes. In the first period Florida held commanding edges shots (17-7), scoring chances (22-5) and high-danger chances (13-2) according to Natural Stat Trick. In the final 51 minutes Edmonton flipped that, outshooting the Panthers 28-23, and out-chancing them 20-10. 'We wanted to come out strong tonight, but they put us on our heels early and we were kind of lollygagging around a little bit,' Draisaitl said. Why professional players were 'lollygagging around' in the first period of a Stanley Cup Final game is an entirely different topic for another story. One thing is clear, though: Coaches believe benching their goalie sends a message to the team that can only be accomplished by such a drastic measure. The coach could easily sit the players in front of Skinner – the ones who were lollygagging – for a shift or two, but it doesn't have the same jarring effect. Advertisement 'When the goalie comes out, and he was the guy who started the game, and you're expecting to be a rock back there,' Lindgren explained. 'When he gets pulled it's a wake up call. You know your backup is going in. He's probably cold. He probably wasn't expecting to play. So it gives the players even more reason to sharpen up and better themselves.' Lindgren's goalie partner in Washington, Logan Thompson, agreed. 'You're sending a message,' Thompson said. '(The starter) has been your go-to guy and he's gotten you to this point. I think it's a 'holy s—' moment for the rest of the guys saying, 'He's not going to bail us out tonight. We need to change something about us. We're clearly not helping him out.' ' An NHL goalie typically knows when the pull is due to his own play. He is well aware of which goals he should've stopped, and which ones he did everything in his process correctly, but still gave up. 'As the game is going on you usually have an idea of how you're playing and the quality of goals you're giving up,' Lindgren said. Even with that understanding, goalies are hyper-competitive and hate being removed from the game in most cases. 'I think every goalie takes the blame when they get pulled, just knowing the nature of how competitive we are,' Thompson said. 'Most goalies always think they can do more or do better.' In the case of Thursday's Game 4 in Florida, the move worked to perfection. Pickard wasn't asked to do much for the majority of his 51 minutes in the crease, but he made timely saves and improved to 6-0 in the playoffs. There are plenty of cases in which it doesn't work. Look no further than Pete DeBoer's decision to pull Jake Oettinger from Game 5 of the Western Conference Final after allowing two goals that clearly weren't on him. Backup Casey DeSmith gave up another goal less than a minute after being thrown into the crease cold, and Dallas' season ended – as did DeBoer's tenure as their coach days later. Advertisement It's such an interesting concept. In the vast majority of cases, the coach is choosing to tab an inferior player at one of the most important positions in order to play a psychological trick on the rest of the team. Even the goalies – who are obviously more opposed to the idea than most – can see the potential merit. 'I think there is probably a time and place for it,' Lindgren said. 'If the team is playing lackadaisical and maybe the effort isn't there or they're hanging the goalie out to dry, then I could see (how) getting him out of there … would shake up and wake up the team a little bit. I've seen it happen. There are definitely times where that has worked.' There are also ways the process could be improved – namely involving the goalie coach, or even the goalie himself, more in the decision. Every situation is unique, but Thompson said he's never been consulted on a possible pull during the game. Some teams empower the goalie coach more than others, but there's no question they should have a say, considering the uniqueness of the position and the goalie coach's expertise. In the end, though, it's always the head coach's call. He assumes all of the risk, and the reward. Sometimes, as with DeBoer, it's the last big call he makes on that team's bench. Sometimes it sparks the team to a thrilling comeback to even the series in the Stanley Cup Final. (Photo of Pickard, left, and Skinner after Game 4: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Draisaitl, Oilers stun the Panthers to tie up the Stanley Cup Final
Yahoo Sports AM is our daily newsletter that keeps you up to date on all things sports. Sign up here to get it every weekday morning. 🚨 Headlines 🏈 Attempted murder charge: Former NFL star Antonio Brown is reportedly wanted in Miami-Dade County on a felony charge of attempted murder with a firearm, the Washington Post reports. The charge is related to an altercation at a Miami boxing event in May. Advertisement 🏒 Hellebuyck wins rare double: Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck became the fifth goalie in NHL history to win both the Hart (MVP) and Vezina Trophy (goalie) in the same season. ⛳️ PGA Tour hires CEO: The PGA Tour is hiring longtime NFL executive Brian Rolapp as the first CEO of its new commercial division. Rolapp had been with the NFL for 22 years and was considered a potential successor to Roger Goodell. ⚽️ De Bruyne to Napoli: Kevin De Bruyne is joining Serie A champion Napoli following his exit from Manchester City, where the Belgian midfielder spent the past 10 years and established himself as one of the club's all-time greats. 🏈 Bronze Brady: The Patriots will unveil a 12-foot-tall statue of Tom Brady (a nod to his No. 12 jersey number) outside Gillette Stadium before their preseason opener in August. 🏆 Draisait, Oilers stun Panthers to draw even Draisaitl is mobbed by his teammates. () Hours after finishing runner-up for the Hart Trophy, Leon Draisaitl put on an MVP-like performance on the league's biggest stage, showing why many believed he should have won. Advertisement Captain clutch: Draisaitl scored his fourth overtime goal of these playoffs (most ever in a single postseason) to lift the Oilers past the Panthers, 5-4 (OT), and even the Stanley Cup Final at two games apiece. He also set up two of Edmonton's goals in the historic come-from-behind win. Epic collapse: Entering Thursday, teams were 37-0 when leading a Cup Final game by three or more goals in the first period. They're now 37-1 after the Panthers blew a 3-0 lead. Epic comeback: The Oilers are the first road team to rally from a three-goal deficit in a Cup Final game since the Canadiens did it against the Seattle Metropolitans 106 years ago (1919). Super sub: Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner was replaced after the first period by journeyman backup Calvin Pickard, whose acrobatic saves paved the way for the comeback. He's now 7-0 in the postseason and could presumably take over the starting duties for Game 5 tomorrow night in Edmonton. Are you not entertained?! Three of the first four games of this final have gone to overtime, which has only happened four times before. We've also seen the two latest tying goals in Cup Final history over the past week: In Game 2, it was Edmonton's Corey Perry (17.8 seconds left) . In Game 4, it was Florida's Sam Reinhart (19.5 seconds). ⛳️ U.S. Open: Round 1 recap J.J. Spaun didn't seem phased by Oakmont in his first competitive round there. () Oakmont Country Club lived up to its billing on Thursday, yielding just 10 rounds under par during Round 1 of the U.S. Open, with an average score of +4.63. Advertisement Yes, but: For all the carnage at the famously difficult track, there was still plenty of impressive golf and highlight shots. Clubhouse leader: J.J. Spaun (-4) shot the first bogey-free round at Oakmont since Dustin Johnson's first round in 2016. Johnson went on to finish -4 and win the tournament. Rare albatross: Patrick Reed recorded the fourth albatross in U.S. Open history when his 286-yard second shot found the cup on the par-5 fourth hole. First eagle ever: Oakmont's par-4 3rd hole had never surrendered an eagle during the U.S. Open… until Shane Lowry carded one during an otherwise ugly round (+9). More from Round 1: Brooks Koepka (-2) is in the hunt after a tongue lashing from his coach … Rory McIlroy (+4) left without talking to media (again) … Bryson DeChambeau (+3) averted a disastrous rules mistake … Scottie Scheffler (+3) turned in a 5.5-hour slog. () Good read: Phil Mickelson walks in silence in possible last U.S. Open (Jay Busbee, Yahoo Sports) As Phil Mickelson, aka Lefty, aka Phil the Thrill, aka FIGJAM, aka one of the two most famous golfers of the 21st century, teed off Thursday in what might be his final U.S. Open, there were more security guards than journalists following him. And there were two security guards. ⚾️ Chart of the day: David vs. Goliath (Lev Akabas/Sportico) Eight teams are in Omaha this weekend for the 2025 College World Series. One of them is not like the others. Advertisement Underdog story: Murray State upset Duke on Monday to clinch their first-ever trip to Omaha and become just the fourth regional No. 4 seed ever to reach the CWS. Not bad for a team with a tiny stadium and a paltry $858,000 budget, which ranks 253rd out of 308 D-I programs and pales in comparison to the other seven teams in Omaha, as illustrated above. Taking on the big boys: The three teams Murray State faced to get here (Ole Miss, Duke, Georgia Tech) have a combined 24 pitchers who average 92+ mph on their fastball. The Racers have none. Thankfully, their offense absolutely rakes and averaged 8.8 runs per game this season, tied for 11th in the nation. Weekend preview: Storylines and players to watch 🏀 NBA Mock Draft 4.0 (Taylar Sievert/Yahoo Sports) With the NBA draft less than two weeks away (June 25-26), Yahoo Sports' Kevin O'Connor shares his latest first-round mock draft, which includes a projected top-10 trade between Philadelphia and New Orleans. Advertisement Lottery: Mavericks: Cooper Flagg (F, Duke) Spurs: Dylan Harper (G, Rutgers) Pelicans*: Ace Bailey (F, Rutgers) Hornets: Kon Knueppel (G/F, Duke) Jazz: VJ Edgecombe (G, Baylor) Wizards: Tre Johnson (G, Texas) 76ers*: Khaman Maluach (C, Duke) Nets: Jeremiah Fears (G, Oklahoma) Raptors: Carter Bryant (F, Arizona) Rockets: Kasparas Jakučionis (G, Illinois) Trail Blazers: Liam McNeeley (F, UConn) Bulls: Jase Richardson (G, Michigan State) Hawks: Derik Queen (C, Maryland) Spurs: Cedric Coward (G, Washington State) Full mock draft: Picks 15-30 *Proposed trade: The Pelicans send the No. 7 pick, a 2026 Pacers 1st-round pick (top-4 protected) and Herb Jones to the 76ers for the No. 3 pick and Kelly Oubre (player option). 📺 Weekend Watchlist Indiana's defense put the clamps on OKC in Game 3. () 🏀 NBA Finals, Game 4 | Fri. 8:30pm ET, ABC The Thunder need a road win tonight in Indianapolis to avoid falling into a dreaded 3-1 hole. The 2016 Cavaliers are the only team in NBA Finals history to erase a 3-1 deficit and win the title. 🏒 Stanley Cup Final, Game 5 | Sat. 8pm, TNT The Oilers were in serious danger of falling into a 3-1 hole on Thursday night. Instead, they head home with all the momentum and a chance to take the series lead as they chase Canada's first Stanley Cup since 1993. ⛳️ U.S. Open | Fri-Sun, USA/NBC/Peacock Only the top 60 players and ties will make it to the weekend at Oakmont, and some big names are in danger of missing the cut. Here are the Round 2 tee times. ⚾️ College World Series | Fri-Sun, ESPN The eight-team double-elimination tournament begins today in Omaha, with No. 13 Coastal Carolina vs. Arizona (2pm) and No. 8 Oregon State vs. Louisville (7pm). Tomorrow, it's No. 15 UCLA vs. Murray State (2pm) and No. 3 Arkansas vs. No. 6 LSU (7pm). The winners and losers of Friday's games play on Sunday. ⚽️ Club World Cup | Sat-Sun, TBS/TNT The inaugural 32-team tournament kicks off tomorrow in Miami, where Inter Miami faces Egypt's Al Ahly (8pm, TBS). The group stage continues on Saturday with four more matches, including PSG vs. Atlético Madrid at the Rose Bowl (3pm, TNT). ⚽️ Gold Cup | Sat-Sun, Fox/FS1 The 16-team competition co-hosted by the U.S. and Canada kicks off tomorrow. The USMNT faces Trinidad and Tobago on Sunday in San Jose (6pm, Fox) before taking on Saudi Arabia and Haiti next week to complete Group D play. 🏈 UFL Championship | Sat. 8pm, ABC The Michigan Panthers, who knocked off the three-time defending champion Birmingham Stallions in the semifinals, take on the DC Defenders in St. Louis for the title of spring football champion. Advertisement More to watch: 👟 Track & Field: NCAA Outdoor Championships (Fri-Sat, ESPN2/ESPNU) … At Oregon's historic Hayward Field. ⚾️ MLB: Yankees at Red Sox (Sat. 7pm, Fox); Giants at Dodgers (Sun. 7pm, ESPN) … Two coastal rivalries. 🏁 NASCAR: Mexico City (Sun. 3pm, Prime) … The Cup Series goes international for the first time in 27 years. 🏎️ F1: Canadian Grand Prix (Sun. 2pm, ABC) … In Montreal. 🥍 PLL: Week 3 (Fri-Sat, ABC/ESPN+) … In Philadelphia. 🏀 BIG3: Week 1 (Sat. 3pm, CBS/Vice) … In Chicago. Full weekend slate → ⚾️ MLB trivia () Reigning AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal (7-2, 1.99 ERA) threw yet another gem on Thursday to further pad his lead atop the 2025 race. In his last 12 starts, he has 101 strikeouts and 5 walks. Question: Who was the last pitcher to win the AL Cy Young Award in back-to-back years? Hint: 1999-2000. Answer at the bottom. 🇨🇦 First since Phelps (Canada Swimming) Canadian swimming phenom Summer McIntosh, 18, broke the world record in three different individual events (200 IM, 400 IM, 400 free) at this week's Canadian Swimming Trials. A Phelpsian feat: The last swimmer to do that at a single long-course meet? Michael Phelps at the 2008 Beijing Games, when the most decorated Olympian ever put forth arguably the greatest Olympics performance ever. Not bad company to be in! Advertisement Looking ahead: McIntosh, who won three gold medals in Paris, plans to move to Austin, Texas, later this summer and begin training with Bob Bowman, who coached Phelps for his entire career. Trivia answer: Pedro Martínez (Red Sox) We hope you enjoyed this edition of Yahoo Sports AM, our daily newsletter that keeps you up to date on all things sports. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox every weekday morning.
