Oilers' move to replace Skinner in goal pays off with an OT win to even Stanley Cup Final
Kris Knoblauch's desperation finally overcame his stubbornness Thursday — just in time to save the Edmonton Oilers' season.
Knoblauch's better-late-than-never decision to bench Stuart Skinner for Calvin Pickard after the first intermission was the No. 1 reason the Florida Panthers are heading back to Canada in a 2-2 series tie instead of one win from another Stanley Cup title.
Pickard came off the bench to stop 22 of the 23 shots he faced, including a would-be game-winner by Panthers forward Sam Bennett in overtime, to key a thrilling 5-4 Oilers win and steal home ice back from a Panthers team that looked unbeatable in the first 20 minutes.
Skinner's third straight shaky start might have cost him his job for good. He gave up three more goals in the first period — two by Matthew Tkachuk — putting the Oilers in a world of trouble.
Knoblauch knew that any more blood would have probably put even the high-powered Oilers in hole too deep to climb out of.
So he made the move he had resisted, sitting Skinner and turning to Pickard. Smart decision. Pickard made a series of marvelous saves to improve to 7-0 in the playoffs.
But the decision seemed to catch even the man of the hour by surprise
'Our team was flat,' Knoblauch said, when asked to explain the move.
'Obviously, you'd like to get a little bit of notice, getting right into the room [during the first intermission],' Pickard joked on TNT postgame. 'But [Knoblauch] waited until right at the 11th hour there, about three and a half minutes left on the clock. I kind of had to scramble and get my gear on.'
'… We play great hockey from behind. It was an unbelievable effort.'
Pickard shouldn't see the bench again. Knoblauch wouldn't commit to a Game 5 starter, but he certainly didn't give Skinner a vote of confidence.
Pickard has allowed two goals on 31 shots this series and has a 2.69 goals-against average this postseason. While Skinner was better than his backup in the first three rounds, he has cratered in this series, allowing 16 goals on 114 shots.
Asked what the difference was between the first period (when the Panthers scored three goals on Skinner) and the final two plus overtime, Panthers forward Anton Lundell replied:
'I think we just as a team, we kind of sat back a little back.'
Lundell continued: 'It's a 0-0 series right now and you, best-of-3, it's good. You know, we didn't expect it to be easy. It shouldn't be easy.'
It certainly won't get any easier if Pickard continues to play like he did Thursday.
'It was a good hockey game,' said Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, who allowed five goals on 30 shots, including the game-winner in overtime by Leon Draisaitl. 'We had a good start. They came back. The series comes down to best-of-3. We're excited about that.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Miami Herald
2 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Why Panthers vs. Oilers II already stands as a historic Stanley Cup Final
Early goals, historically late goals, once-in-a-century comebacks, overtime games that seemed about to end three, four, 17 times before they did, gorgeous goals and four games in, this year's Panthers-Edmonton Oilers Stanley Cup Final rematch already might be the best sequel since 'The Godfather, Part II.' Or, at least, 'The Empire Strikes Back.' On TNT's Game 4 postgame show, Wayne Gretzky, holder of 60 NHL records, said other than all of Game 3 and Game 4's first period, 'it has been probably as good playoff hockey as I've ever seen.' READ MORE: Draisaitl scores in overtime as Oilers beat Panthers in Game 4 of Stanley Cup Final Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said after Game 4, 'Games like that, it's exhausting. It's a rollercoaster. I do appreciate the level of hockey: two good teams, playing as hard as they are, playing the right way. I do appreciate being so close to the action and seeing what I've seen. Obviously, with what's on the line, it's stressful. 'But, it is fun. I think our guys are having fun enjoying this moment.' When Panthers right wing Matthew Tkachuk was asked after Game 4 if this was the tightest series he's been in, Tkachuk pointed out the Panthers had three overtime games in the first four Eastern Conference Final games against the Rangers a year ago. But, a) that wasn't a Stanley Cup Final and b) all three of these games had lead changes in regulation and c) two got sent into overtime on the latest game-tying regulation goals in Stanley Cup Finals history. Only two Stanley Cup Finals since forward passing became legal 97 years ago — remember that, we'll bring it up again — have had more goals in the first four games than the 32 scored by the Panthers and Oilers: the New York Islanders first two Stanley Cup Finals, 1981, 36 with the Minnesota North Stars and 1980, 33 with Philadelphia. Despite near historic Cup Final offense, nobody blinked when Tkachuk said about teammate Sergei Bobrovsky and Edmonton's Calvin Pickard, 'Both goalies were unreal tonight.' Tkachuk pointed to a partial breakaway save on Leon Draisaitl in the third. He could have brought up Bobrovsky turning away Connor McDavid after the Edmonton center swiftly slalomed between tired Panthers penalty-killers to a one-on-one duel with the Panthers goalie. Pickard's Game 4 highlight save came in overtime, gloving Sam Bennett's blast off the crossbar. The game might not have gotten there had Pickard not stoned Anton Lundell after a turnover gave the Panthers center a mini-breakaway with the Panthers up 3-1 in the second period. Pickard subbed for Stuart Skinner, who more than one person thought did well to hold the Panthers to three goals on 17 shots in the first period. 'Every board battle, everything can turn into something, so there's a tension because both teams can score,' Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. 'From my point of view, there's been phenomenal goaltending in this series. The numbers say I'm lying, the final score says I'm lying but the goaltending's been incredible. Because the game can break on slot pass to Sam Bennett, crack a bar. 'Just everything is dangerous all the time. So there's a mental intensity, mental toughness that both teams show.' History being made ▪ By winning Game 4 after the Panthers had a 3-0 lead, Edmonton became the first team to do that in a Stanley Cup Final road game since the pandemic. No, not the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 that drove the playoffs into a bubble — the flu pandemic of 1919, the one that canceled the Stanley Cup Final after five games. In that last game, the Seattle Metropolitans led 3-0 on home ice before Le Club de Hockey Canadien from Montreal pulled out a 4-3 win. That was the first season the NHL used blue lines. Eight seasons later, players could legally pass the puck forward. ▪ Last-minute goals sending Stanley Cup Final games into overtime happen. But, they don't happen as late or as often as they've happened in this series. Panthers right wing Sam Reinhart's goal with 19.5 seconds left Thursday would've been the latest game-tying goal in Stanley Cup Final it hadn't been for Corey Perry's goal with 17.8 seconds left in Game 2 that sent that game into overtime. This is the first time two games in the same Cup Final had last minute goals to bring on overtime. Both games, the team that sent it into overtime wasn't the team that won it, running against the theory of momentum. 'Why doesn't it carry over? I mean, when you're talking at this time of year, it's bounces either way,' Reinhart said. 'I think if you look at Game 2, they could have had a number go in the net, and tonight we could have had a number go in the net. So, I don't think it's too hard to reset. It's just the way the bounces go sometimes.' ▪ Speaking of bonus hockey, four other Stanley Cup Final series also treated fans to overtime in three of the first four games: 1946 Montreal vs. Boston; 1951 Toronto vs. Montreal, when all five games went to overtime; 1993 Montreal vs. Los Angeles; and 2013 Chicago vs. Boston. ▪ None of those series, however, possessed the bungee jumping quality of the Panthres and Oilers, who exchanged the lead in regulation in all three of their games. The Panthers went down 1-0 in Game 1, but got up 3-1 before losing 4-3. In Game 2, the Panthers went up 1-0, Edmonton took 2-1 and 3-2 leads in the first period, the Panthers' took a 4-3 lead after two periods and won 5-4 in overtime. ▪ Thursday, as discussed above, the Panthers were up 3-0 after one, Edmonton tied it in the second period before taking a 4-3 lead in the third and winning it in overtime on Leon Draisaitl's goal. A third multi-goal comeback for a win would tie this series with the 1987 Edmonton-Philadelphia final for most such wins in a final of the post-1967 NHL expansion era. ▪ Draisaitl's Game 4 overtime shove that caromed off a sliding Niko Mikkola and past Bobrovsky gave him a record four playoff overtime goals this year and made him the third person with two such goals in the same Cup Final. Both Draisaitl's predecessors, the Rangers Don Raleigh in 1950 and Montreal's John LeClair in 1993, did so in back-to-back games.
San Francisco Chronicle
3 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Edmonton grabs home ice and heads home in thrilling Stanley Cup Final tied 2-2 vs. Florida Panthers
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Corey Perry knew from his seat on the bench he wanted to say something. His Edmonton Oilers looked flat, outclassed by the defending champion Florida Panthers, and were in danger of a third consecutive loss in their Stanley Cup Final rematch that would have put them on the brink of losing once again. In the locker room at the first intermission, he offered some words of wisdom. 'It wasn't wisdom. It was just honesty,' Perry said Friday. 'Had to realize where we were at the moment and just kind of look ourselves in the mirror and how we were playing.' Everything flipped from there, with the Oilers erasing a three-goal deficit and bouncing back from losing the lead with 19.5 seconds left in regulation to win Game 4 and tie the series. This terrific fina l is now a best of three between two titans, experienced like Perry because so many involved have been here before and know how to be at their best when the stakes are the highest. 'There's a reason both teams are here," Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad said. "It's the hardest trophy to win, and both teams are resilient and strong and have some amazing players that can do some amazing things. It's going to take all of us. That's the message: Stay together and find a way to get it done.' Sometime in the next week, either Florida goes back to back or Connor McDavid hoists the Stanley Cup for the first time and ends Canada's NHL championship drought dating to 1993. These hardened opponents will play at least two more times, starting with Game 5 on Saturday night in Edmonton, putting on a spectacular display of the sport in the process. 'Oh, this is as good as this thing gets,' Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. 'This is Christmas. This is the payoff.' Maurice's team has played 312 regular-season and playoff games since he took over. The Oilers have played 303. Yet, somehow they are bringing some of their best hockey in June. It's something Maurice chalks up to excitement that builds energy knowing the end is near, and the Panthers, in their third consecutive final and the Oilers in their second, seem to thrive at this stage. '(It is) just the maturity of the team,' second-year Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said. 'We're an older team. There's been a lot of highs and lows that they've experienced.' Those highs and lows hit extremes on Thursday night when the Panthers built a 3-0 lead in the first period and the Oilers erased it in the second. They went back and forth again in the third before Leon Draisaitl scored his single-season, playoff-record fourth overtime goal. Florida is now all even with the team it beat in the final a year ago, knowing home-ice advantage again melted away. 'You kind of ride that wave,' winger Sam Reinhart said. 'It's an emotional grind. That's part of it. That makes it so sweet when you win it. So, we're in another battle, and we won't want it any other way. And now it's about recovering and going into Edmonton and trying to do what we can to win a Game 5 and bring it back here.' There will be a Game 6 on Tuesday night in Florida, along with the nerves and anticipation about one team being on the verge of completing a title journey. But players can't realistically think that way. 'I'm not looking longer or further than the next game,' Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. 'It's Game 5 now, and we all know that Game 5 is always a big, big game in the playoffs.' Thanks to a scheduling quirk, it also comes on a short turnaround, without an extra travel day for the teams to practice and shake off the cross-continental jet lag. Maurice said that's nothing new for his group, accustomed to it from the long season. They know there will be a jacked-up crowd waitin in Edmonton. "We know it's going to be a quick pace, and that building is very loud," Florida's Gustav Forsling said. 'It's going to be loud. It's going to be pressure on both teams.' ___
Fox Sports
3 hours ago
- Fox Sports
Edmonton grabs home ice and heads home in thrilling Stanley Cup Final tied 2-2 vs. Florida Panthers
Associated Press FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Corey Perry knew from his seat on the bench he wanted to say something. His Edmonton Oilers looked flat, outclassed by the defending champion Florida Panthers, and were in danger of a third consecutive loss in their Stanley Cup Final rematch that would have put them on the brink of losing once again. In the locker room at the first intermission, he offered some words of wisdom. 'It wasn't wisdom. It was just honesty,' Perry said Friday. 'Had to realize where we were at the moment and just kind of look ourselves in the mirror and how we were playing.' Everything flipped from there, with the Oilers erasing a three-goal deficit and bouncing back from losing the lead with 19.5 seconds left in regulation to win Game 4 and tie the series. This terrific fina l is now a best of three between two titans, experienced like Perry because so many involved have been here before and know how to be at their best when the stakes are the highest. 'There's a reason both teams are here," Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad said. "It's the hardest trophy to win, and both teams are resilient and strong and have some amazing players that can do some amazing things. It's going to take all of us. That's the message: Stay together and find a way to get it done.' Sometime in the next week, either Florida goes back to back or Connor McDavid hoists the Stanley Cup for the first time and ends Canada's NHL championship drought dating to 1993. These hardened opponents will play at least two more times, starting with Game 5 on Saturday night in Edmonton, putting on a spectacular display of the sport in the process. 'Oh, this is as good as this thing gets,' Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. 'This is Christmas. This is the payoff.' Maurice's team has played 312 regular-season and playoff games since he took over. The Oilers have played 303. Yet, somehow they are bringing some of their best hockey in June. It's something Maurice chalks up to excitement that builds energy knowing the end is near, and the Panthers, in their third consecutive final and the Oilers in their second, seem to thrive at this stage. '(It is) just the maturity of the team,' second-year Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said. 'We're an older team. There's been a lot of highs and lows that they've experienced.' Those highs and lows hit extremes on Thursday night when the Panthers built a 3-0 lead in the first period and the Oilers erased it in the second. They went back and forth again in the third before Leon Draisaitl scored his single-season, playoff-record fourth overtime goal. Florida is now all even with the team it beat in the final a year ago, knowing home-ice advantage again melted away. 'You kind of ride that wave,' winger Sam Reinhart said. 'It's an emotional grind. That's part of it. That makes it so sweet when you win it. So, we're in another battle, and we won't want it any other way. And now it's about recovering and going into Edmonton and trying to do what we can to win a Game 5 and bring it back here.' There will be a Game 6 on Tuesday night in Florida, along with the nerves and anticipation about one team being on the verge of completing a title journey. But players can't realistically think that way. 'I'm not looking longer or further than the next game,' Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. 'It's Game 5 now, and we all know that Game 5 is always a big, big game in the playoffs.' Thanks to a scheduling quirk, it also comes on a short turnaround, without an extra travel day for the teams to practice and shake off the cross-continental jet lag. Maurice said that's nothing new for his group, accustomed to it from the long season. They know there will be a jacked-up crowd waitin in Edmonton. "We know it's going to be a quick pace, and that building is very loud," Florida's Gustav Forsling said. 'It's going to be loud. It's going to be pressure on both teams.' ___ AP NHL playoffs: and recommended
