Oilers vs. Panthers: Florida's Brad Marchand steals Game 2 of Stanley Cup final in double overtime
The Florida Panthers never panic.
The defending champions, playing a bend-but-don't-break brand of hockey, got back into the Stanley Cup final with a 5-4 double-overtime win in Game 2 on Friday night.
Brad Marchand's second goal of the game earned the Panthers a split at Edmonton's Rogers Place.
The first two games didn't disappoint in this final rematch.
BRAD MARCHAND PLAYS HERO FOR THE CATS 🐀
The Panthers even the #StanleyCup Final on Marchand's Subway Canada OT winner 🚨 pic.twitter.com/V09QsQFb2N
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 7, 2025
Once Marchand scored short-handed in the second period for a 4-3 Florida lead, the focus in the third was going to be goaltending. There had been no shortage of chances all game, with both Florida's Sergei Bobrovsky and Edmonton's Stuart Skinner called upon to make big saves.
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Bobrovsky's stop on a Leon Draisaitl one-timer with 57 seconds left might have been a game-saver, until Corey Perry scored with 18 seconds to go and the Edmonton net empty to force overtime.
Sam Bennett, Seth Jones and Dmitri Kulikov also scored for Florida. Draisaitl, Evan Bouchard and Evander Kane struck for Edmonton before Perry's marker.
It's the 30th time a best-of-seven final has been tied at a game apiece. And the Panthers are 9-3 as visitors this post-season, a franchise record for road wins in one playoff year.
The Oilers, though, have history on their side. Even though the Panthers now have home-ice advantage, teams that open at home have won 20 of the 30 finals that started 1-1.
Bennett vs. Skinner
It was a first period for the ages, with something for everyone — from goals to fisticuffs to big hits and big plays. Bennett did what he does best: scoring while also getting under Skinner's skin. Bennett opened the scoring with his playoff-leading 13th goal, just 2:07 into the game.
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The Oilers, however, haven't been letting Florida hold a lead for long, with Kane and Bouchard scoring 1:40 apart to make it 2-1 Edmonton. Jones tied it, taking a pass Eetu Luostarinen while Edmonton's defensive zone play broke down.
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The big moment of the period was still to come. Bennett fell into Skinner in the first game and got credit for a goal. But he didn't get away with it in Game 2 after brushing Mattias Ekholm and falling into the goalie, who seemed to be in pain with a twisted leg. Skinner would eventually get up, but not before Matthew Tkachuk and Trent Frederic got into it. Bennett got the extra two minutes, joined by Tkachuk in the box. Tkachuk patted Bennett on the shoulder, as if to say: good job falling on the goalie.
On the ensuing power play, Connor McDavid made them pay. He dipsied around Selke winner Aleksander Barkov, doodled past Aaron Ekblad and passed the puck past Anton Lundell to a waiting Draisaitl for a 3-2 Edmonton lead.
As McDavid said before the game: 'We've definitely developed a sense of understanding what the other one's thinking in any given moment. Leon and I have a great understanding of each other. Sometimes all it takes is a look.'
Panthers pounce
Panthers coach Paul Maurice said he wasn't going to change his lineup, or ask players to do anything differently in Game 2, because he thought they played a decent Game 1 in defeat.
'We do think there's a few things that we can do a little bit better,' he said before the game.
Nhl
Analysis
Edmonton Oilers vs. Florida Panthers: Everything you need to know about the Stanley Cup final
From Connor McDavid and Brad Marchand being X-factors all the way to the coaching matchup,
One of those things was forechecking. And they were much better in the second period, playing more of a Panthers style. They were rewarded with two goals and a 15-8 shots advantage. The Oilers had no answer for Florida's physicality as the Panthers won puck battle after puck battle. Finally, Kulikov scored from the point, off Bouchard and past Skinner to tie the game.
The referees were busy in the first period with 11 minor penalties called; less so in the second, with three. One was against Florida's Niko Mikkola, but even that didn't give the Oilers relief. Marchand managed a short-handed breakaway and gave Florida a 4-3 lead. It was Marchand's second career short-hander in a Cup final, exactly 14 years after the first against the Vancouver Canucks.
Cup notables
Before Marchand, defenceman Larry Robinson (Games 1 and 2 in 1989) was the only player 37 or older to score in each of the first two games of a Cup final.
Bennett's game-opening goal was his 12th on the road in these playoffs, an NHL record. His five-game road goal streak is a Panthers best, breaking his own mark.
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