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CTV News
a day ago
- Entertainment
- CTV News
‘Mature' Oilers poised for Cup final rematch with battle-tested Panthers
For the second year in a row, the Edmonton Oilers will play the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Finals. CTV News Edmonton's Nahreman Issa has the story. DALLAS — The Oilers were crestfallen. Heads sank into hands. Tears flowed from reddened eyes. Edmonton's bloodied and bearded roster had given everything in the Stanley Cup final. The gutsy, backs-against-the-wall effort — valiant in erasing a 3-0 series deficit to force Game 7 — came up just short 12 months ago. Connor McDavid Aleksander Barkov 2024 Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid (97) is consoled by Florida Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov (16) after Florida defeated Edmonton in game 7 of the NHL Stanley Cup finals in Sunrise, Fla., on Monday, June 24, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette (Nathan Denette/THE CANADIAN PRESS) The team's core led by superstar captain Connor McDavid vowed that sweltering Florida night after falling to the Panthers that they would be back on the same stage. 'It's been a want since the end of last year,' Corey Perry, the Oilers' greybeard winger, said of a return to the NHL's title series. 'There's been a lot of thinking about what happened last year, and self-reflecting. 'Here we are.' The Oilers, it turns out, were right. Edmonton will make a second consecutive appearance in the Cup final after beating the Dallas Stars 4-1 in the Western Conference final. And Florida, once again, is waiting. 'It was on our mind since we lost that last game,' Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said of his team's mission. 'It was a long, tough summer, training camp, regular season.' Oilers Stars Hockey Edmonton Oilers center Mattias Janmark (13) and defenseman John Klingberg (36) celebrate after winning Game 5 of the Western Conference finals against the Dallas Stars in the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs, Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) (Julio Cortez/AP) The team from Alberta's capital didn't have its best for stretches of that 82-game schedule. Edmonton finished third in the Pacific Division following a rash of injuries down the stretch and fell behind 0-2 to the Los Angeles Kings in the first round of the playoffs. All the club has done since? Put up a 12-2 mark in rebounding with four straight wins against the Kings before getting past both the Vegas Golden Knights and the Stars in five games. And unlike last spring when the Oilers, who host Game 1 of the Cup final Wednesday, relied heavily on the contributions of McDavid and Leon Draisaitl — to be clear, the two headliners have again been excellent — the group has got goals from 19 different players in this post-season. A rebuilt defence corps, meanwhile, weathered the loss of Mattias Ekholm, back from injury for Thursday's 6-3 victory in Game 5 over Dallas after basically two months on the shelf, while the goaltending of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard has come up huge when needed. 'Some teams get really hot coming down the stretch and they ride it all the way through the playoffs,' McDavid said late Thursday night in the bowels of a cavernous American Airlines Center. 'For us, it's come together in the playoffs. We've been building and building and building our game. 'Our best hockey is still in front of us.' Oilers Stars Hockey Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid (97) scores against Dallas Stars goaltender Casey DeSmith and center Roope Hintz (24) during the second period of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals in the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs, Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson) (Gareth Patterson/AP) Edmonton had already ridden a wild roller-coaster by this point last year. This run feels different. 'The first time you go through it, there's a ton of joy and excitement,' Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse said of winning three playoff rounds. 'And there is now, don't get me wrong, but there's also a hunger and knowing what's coming and the opportunity that's ahead. We're all excited.' 'Those games can be emotionally draining,' McDavid added. 'We're not drained … we've got lots of depth. We've got as good a chance as they do.' That would be the nasty, battle-tested Panthers — in a third straight final after steamrolling the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1, bossing the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 7, and disposing of the Carolina Hurricanes in five. Panthers Hurricanes Hockey Florida Panthers' Aleksander Barkov (16) skates over to accept the Prince of Wales Trophy following Game 5 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, May 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker) (Karl B DeBlaker/AP) 'We know what they're about,' Draisaitl said. 'We played them seven times. It's nice to get a shot at getting some revenge, but we're a long ways from that.' Knoblauch said his players are wiser as they pivot to an opponent led by Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett, Sergei Bobrovsky and Brad Marchand making its third straight Cup appearance. 'This is a mature group,' the second-year bench boss said of Edmonton. 'They're older. They've seen a lot of playoff hockey. They know what they need to do to get it done.' The task, however, remains daunting. 'If it's going to change, we're going to play our best hockey,' Knoblauch added. 'We have a chance, but we're going to have to be at our best.' The Oilers have been pretty close to that already in these playoffs. Now they need more. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2025. Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press
New York Times
a day ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
The Oilers' tweak that could change Stanley Cup Final rematch vs. Panthers
This week has been an overwhelming one for Edmonton Oilers fans. The injury to Zach Hyman that will cost the team its best winger for the rest of the playoffs, the return of Mattias Ekholm to the lineup and Calvin Pickard stepping in as backup goaltender were all explosive developments. Add that to the strong showing at home versus the Dallas Stars, and then closing out the series on Thursday night, and heads are spinning in Oilers Nation. Advertisement It's been the equivalent of trying to take a drink from a firehose. Now, after the Florida Panthers flattened the Carolina Hurricanes to win the East, talk will move on to the Stanley Cup Final. Oilers fans got one answer on Thursday night in the game versus Dallas. Corey Perry was deployed in Hyman's role on the No. 1 line and flourished. Some answers will come in the days ahead. Key among them? How to overcome the Panthers, who are as close to the 1970s Philadelphia Flyers 'Broad Street Bullies' as we're likely to see in the modern hockey era. What can the Oilers do in order to defeat the Panthers' suffocating forecheck and fantastic skill on quick turnovers? The key to winning is already evident. The Oilers are enjoying an impressive run at five-on-five during this spring's playoffs. The SA-60 numbers in the game state are almost identical to last spring's playoffs, and the expected GA-60 is slightly higher than one year ago. With those facts in play, one would expect a higher GA-60, but the results in this year's playoffs are running counter to prevailing wisdom: All numbers five-on-five, via Natural Stat Trick There are a few reasons this could be happening. Luck is often overlooked, and impossible to accurately measure, but it's important to acknowledge it exists and may skew the math. If regression hits during the Stanley Cup Final against Florida, we can safely credit luck and the natural order of things (regression) for it. The eye test suggests the Oilers are defending less, and more specifically, are running around in their own zone less often during this spring's postseason. The team's save percentage year over year has improved markedly, but there's reason to believe (visually) the Oilers are doing a better job in puck retrieval and breakouts. Advertisement Why are the Oilers better at five-on-five goal suppression this spring? After Game 3 of the series against Dallas, Meghan Chayka of Stathletes published some powerful numbers. Ignoring the outstanding offensive numbers on the Edmonton side, Chayka pointed to the Stars' inability to get shots, scoring chances and goals off the rush. The Stars thrived in this area of the game during the regular season and have several proven drivers in this area of the game. The Oilers' SA-60 numbers at five-on-five haven't changed much since last year, but the club is surrendering fewer goals. The Chayka numbers tell us that while Dallas was shooting the puck, the Stars were not, in fact, making the goalie move, nor scoring goals. Low percentage shots from opponents and Edmonton playing less in its defensive zone are keys. Both innovations are helping the goaltenders. The year-over-year save percentage for the Oilers: .896 in 2024's playoffs, .922 this season. Stuart Skinner and Pickard are (as Chayka describes in her graph) in motion far less than last year. The Oilers invested $3.6 million of the overall cap in goaltending in 2024-25. That's the lowest among true Stanley Cup contenders. When general manager Stan Bowman arrived, he didn't look for an upgrade in net (although there were calls for it from many fans and media). Instead, he addressed defence, and added men who could handle the puck. One of his first moves came when he acquired Ty Emberson. During the regular season, Bowman signed veteran John Klingberg, who struggled early but has emerged as a playoff giant in puck retrieval, outlets and finding seams for passes. It is Klingberg who gives the Oilers' second pairing a dangerous offensive edge. Finally, at the deadline, Bowman acquired Jake Walman, who has a complete skill set. Walman is a puck mover, passer and creative thinker offensively, and has grown over the years as a coverage defenceman. Edmonton's defence is better for his presence, and the second pairing (Walman-Klingberg) has often been the best one during this year's playoffs. All numbers five-on-five, via Natural Stat Trick The top three unduplicated pairings (in blue) show exceptional goal suppression. The formula Edmonton is currently using for retrieval and outlets, matched to the defensive pairings that are doing well (as above), gives the Oilers an advantage fans did not see one year ago. Advertisement That advantage should be on display against the Panthers in the final. Ekholm's presence will also be felt. Ekholm and Evan Bouchard played 10 clean minutes defensively at five-on-five against Dallas on Thursday night and were on the ice for one Oilers goal. The idea of moving the puck expertly and deploying veteran defencemen isn't new to Edmonton management. The same summer the Oilers drafted Connor McDavid, new (at the time) general manager Peter Chiarelli signed veteran two-way defenceman Andrej Sekera. He was a perfect fit for the organization, and with young and astute puck movers like Oscar Klefbom in the system, the club appeared set for the next several years. Injuries had an impact, but Edmonton managers could never find enough of this player type, let alone get ahead of the problem. Chiarelli added Adam Larsson, who was a quality shutdown type but not a pure passer. Nurse had passing issues. When Ken Holland arrived in 2019, he immediately went to work on the problem. His solutions were expensive (Duncan Keith) and too old to have a sustained impact (again Keith). Once the organization signed Brad Holland as pro scouting director, and the analytics department held more sway, more capable names (specifically Ekholm) were added. It should be noted that Bouchard was an astute draft selection by Chiarelli and his scouts in 2018. His growth in all areas over the last two seasons, and especially the playoffs, has been a key element in Edmonton's success in puck moving. The Florida forecheck is suffocating. Stuart Skinner has improved as a puck handler, and that may come into play in an effort to aid the defencemen. Using the middle of the ice for outlets has been effective for the Oilers, but Florida will have scouted Edmonton, and new wrinkles may be required. Advertisement The bottom line for the Oilers: Bowman's acquisition of puck movers, specifically Walman and Klingberg, has tilted the ice in the Oilers' favour through three rounds of the postseason. Will it work against the Panthers? Stay tuned. (Photo of Roope Hintz and Jake Walman: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
Fox News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Edmonton Oilers eye revenge in Stanley Cup Final after rallying past Dallas Stars in conference final
The Edmonton Oilers advanced to their second straight Stanley Cup Final as they defeated the Dallas Stars 6-3 in Game 5 of the Western Conference Final at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Thursday night. The Oilers will look for revenge against the Florida Panthers after last season's heartbreaking Game 7 loss in the Stanley Cup Final. It took Edmonton one less game in this year's Western Conference Final rematch to dispatch Dallas. Last season, the Oilers beat the Stars 4-2 in the Western Conference Final before moving on. The Oilers raced out to an early lead on Thursday, as they scored on their first two shots. Corey Perry and Mattias Janmark beat Stars goalie Jake Oettinger to give Edmonton a quick 2-0 lead. Dallas head coach Peter DeBoer didn't waste any time and pulled Oettinger from the game after he allowed the two goals. However, the switch to backup goalie Casey DeSmith didn't yield much better results. Edmonton's Jeff Skinner beat DeSmith for a goal right after he replaced Oettinger and gave the Oilers a 3-0 lead with his first goal of the playoffs. The Stars managed to cut the lead to 3-2, but Connor McDavid scored a beautiful breakaway goal to make the game 4-2 and shift the momentum back towards the Oilers. Stars forward Jason Robertson scored to make it 4-3, but Oilers forward Evander Kane responded with a goal to regain the Oilers' two-goal lead. Edmonton's Kasperi Kapanen put the finishing touch on the win with an empty-net goal as time was winding down to make it 6-3. This is the third consecutive season the Stars have lost in the Western Conference Final. "You've got to keep knocking on the door," DeBoer said. "We chased every single game in this series, and that's a tough way to play hockey against that team. It was the story of the entire series, but the fourth goal, Connor's goal ... the puck bounces into the neutral zone, he's coming off the bench, he's not missing that. It's game over." At the Oilers' celebration after the game, McDavid made sure to touch the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl, the trophy awarded to the Western Conference champion; last year, he superstitiously opted not to touch it, but they went on to lose in the Stanley Cup Final. "It's pretty obvious, I think," McDavid said about what was different from the end of last year's Western Conference Final. "Don't touch it last year, you don't win. Touch it this year, hopefully we win." In last season's Stanley Cup Final, the Oilers nearly pulled off one of the most improbable comebacks in sports history. Edmonton fell behind 3-0 in the series but battled back to force a Game 7, which they eventually lost 2-1. Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final is set to begin Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
National Post
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- National Post
It never gets old for Corey Perry, now in his sixth Stanley Cup final
Article content After Corey Perry scored his seventh goal of the playoffs and reached the Stanley Cup final for the fifth time in the last six springs, fittingly a rematch with Florida, a media guy piped up. Article content Article content 'How does it feel?' he was asked. Article content Perry looked like he'd been asked if getting a hole-in-one gets old. Article content 'Uh, excited, obviously yeah…as I've said through the playoffs, this is what we play for, this is why we play,' he said. Article content Article content 'We've got some guys who don't know that feeling (Jeff Skinner after 1,078 league games). We said after Game 7 (loss in Florida last June) we would be back. And we are back,' said Perry. Article content It never gets old for Perry, being on one of the last two teams standing. Article content Now Perry is old, at least what is says on his birth certificate. But not at work. Article content 'What is he, 56?' kidded his friend and former Anaheim Ducks teammate Kevin Bieksa on SportsNet Thursday night after Perry, who turned 40 two weeks ago scored the Edmonton Oilers ' first goal, flipping one off Stars' goalie Jake Oettinger's arm and into the Dallas net on the power play. Article content Perry's seven goals are remarkably the same as Leon Draisaitl has through the Oilers 16-game run to another Cup finals matchup with Florida Panthers. Only the ousted Mikko Rantanen (Dallas) and Sam Bennett (Florida), who have nine, and Carolina's Andrei Svechnikov (eight) have more than Perry. Chew on that. Article content In his 231st playoff game, tied with Guy Carbonneau for sixth all-time, Perry became the oldest player in history with seven goals in a single playoff season. He surpassed Teemu Selanne (2011), Mark Recchi (2010), Ron Francis (2002) and Jean Beliveau (1971). Those four Hall of Famers all had six goals in a playoff year, so yes, Perry, when he finally quits playing, deserves HOF consideration. Article content And Perry's goals in Game 4 and Game 5 of the Oiler-Stars series also put him in rarefied company with another guy in the HOF, Daniel Alfredsson (Ottawa) as the first 40 year old to score in back-to-back playoff games since 2013. Article content Article content 'A lot is made about how old he is but he's still playing like he's in his prime,' said Connor McDavid, who was 10 years old when Perry won his one and only Cup in 2007. 'He's been producing, scoring big goals, getting under their (opponent's) skin, getting in on the forecheck, doing all the things we need at this time of year.' Article content Perry, now playing regularly on right wing with McDavid after Zach Hyman broke his wrist, has been in the Cup final six times in all, tying him with Wayne Gretzky, Esa Tikkanen, Bob Gainey and Randy Gregg, if we're keeping track. But Perry is the only player who has ever done it with five different teams–Anaheim, Dallas, Montreal, Tampa and the Oilers. Perry has just the one Cup celebration in 2007 with the Ducks, as we all know. He had just turned 22 then. He has just turned 40 now.
CBC
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBC
Revenge or reprise? 'Mature' Oilers poised for Cup final rematch with battle-tested Panthers
Social Sharing The Oilers were crestfallen. Heads sank into hands. Tears flowed from reddened eyes. Edmonton's bloodied and bearded roster had given everything in the Stanley Cup final. The gutsy, backs-against-the-wall effort — valiant in erasing a 3-0 series deficit to force Game 7 — came up just short 12 months ago. The team's core, led by superstar captain Connor McDavid, vowed that sweltering Florida night after falling to the Panthers that they would be back on the same stage. "It's been a want since the end of last year," Corey Perry, the Oilers' greybeard winger, said of a return to the NHL's title series. "There's been a lot of thinking about what happened last year, and self-reflecting. "Here we are." The Oilers, it turns out, were right. Edmonton will make a second consecutive appearance in the Cup final after beating the Dallas Stars 4-1 in the Western Conference final. And Florida, once again, is waiting. "It was on our mind since we lost that last game," Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said of his team's mission. "It was a long, tough summer, training camp, regular season." WATCH | Oilers playoff run helping newcomers find community: How the Oilers playoff run helps newcomers find community 16 hours ago Duration 1:55 The team from Alberta's capital didn't have its best for stretches of that 82-game schedule. Edmonton finished third in the Pacific Division following a rash of injuries down the stretch and fell behind 0-2 to the Los Angeles Kings in the first round of the playoffs. All the club has done since? Put up a 12-2 mark in rebounding with four straight wins against the Kings before getting past both the Vegas Golden Knights and the Stars in five games. And unlike last spring when the Oilers, who host Game 1 of the Cup final Wednesday, relied heavily on the contributions of McDavid and Leon Draisaitl — to be clear, the two headliners have again been excellent — the group has got goals from 19 different players in this post-season. A rebuilt defence corps, meanwhile, weathered the loss of Mattias Ekholm, back from injury for Thursday's 6-3 victory in Game 5 over Dallas after basically two months on the shelf, while the goaltending of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard has come up huge when needed. "Some teams get really hot coming down the stretch and they ride it all the way through the playoffs," McDavid said late Thursday night in the bowels of a cavernous American Airlines Center. "For us, it's come together in the playoffs. We've been building and building and building our game. "Our best hockey is still in front of us." Edmonton had already ridden a wild roller-coaster by this point last year. This run feels different. "The first time you go through it, there's a ton of joy and excitement," Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse said of winning three playoff rounds. "And there is now, don't get me wrong, but there's also a hunger and knowing what's coming and the opportunity that's ahead. We're all excited." "Those games can be emotionally draining," McDavid added. "We're not drained — we've got lots of depth. We've got as good a chance as they do." That would be the nasty, battle-tested Panthers — in a third straight final after steamrolling the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1, bossing the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 7, and disposing of the Carolina Hurricanes in five. "We know what they're about," Draisaitl said. "We played them seven times. It's nice to get a shot at getting some revenge, but we're a long ways from that." Knoblauch said his players are wiser as they pivot to an opponent led by Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett, Sergei Bobrovsky and Brad Marchand making its third straight Cup appearance. "This is a mature group," the second-year bench boss said of Edmonton. "They're older. They've seen a lot of playoff hockey. They know what they need to do to get it done." The task, however, remains daunting. "If it's going to change, we're going to play our best hockey," Knoblauch added. "We have a chance, but we're going to have to be at our best."
