Florida is now one victory away from a first Stanley Cup. The Panthers won 4-3 in Edmonton to take a 3-0 advantage against the Oilers in the final of the NHL playoffs.
The task for the Oilers and their superstar Connor McDavid is almost insurmountable. In the entire history of the NHL, only four teams have managed to win a series after losing the first three games. And this feat has only been accomplished once in the playoff final, in 1942 by Toronto.
For their part, the Panthers are playing in the third Stanley Cup final in their history, which began in 1993/94, the second in a row. Beaten 4-0 by Colorado at the final stage in 1996, they were defeated in five matches by Vegas last year.
Bobrovsky decisive
The Panthers were once again able to count on a remarkable Sergei Bobrovsky. The Russian goalkeeper was credited with 32 saves, while his teammates managed only 23 shots on target. Dominant, the Oilers cracked in the second third, conceding three goals in the space of 6’19” to find themselves trailing 4-1 in the 36th minute.
Edmonton, however, got back to 4-3 in the 55th minute. But the Oilers, lacking in powerplay efficiency (0/3 Thursday, 0/10 in the series), were unable to turn things around.
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