Long-awaited rematch gets underway at Rogers Place
EDMONTON – The day has arrived.
After a week of building up anticipation, the Florida Panthers will drop the puck against the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Place on Wednesday.
“Finally,” captain Aleksander Barkov said.
Just the second rematch in the Stanley Cup Final in the past 40 years and 11th overall in NHL history, the Panthers beat the Oilers in seven games to capture their first Cup in 2024.
The Panthers have 14 players on their current roster from last year’s championship squad trying to repeat, while the Oilers have 16 players from their roster looking for some revenge.
“You get flashbacks from last year, for sure,” forward Anton Lundell said. “Same situation, same teams in the Final. A lot of the same guys. It’s going to be a good battle again.”
Just the ninth franchise to reach the Stanley Cup Final in three straight seasons, the Panthers took down the Tampa Bay Lightning (five games), Toronto Maple Leafs (seven games) and Carolina Hurricanes (five games) to win the Eastern Conference.
Barkov leads the Panthers in playoff scoring with 17 points (six goals, 11 assists), while Sam Bennett (16), Matthew Tkachuk (16), Carter Verhaeghe (14), Brad Marchand (14), Sam Reinhart (13) and Eetu Luostarinen (13) aren’t too far behind.
Spreading out the offense, Florida has 10 different skaters with double-digit points.
Dealing with a lower-body injury, A.J. Greer will be out of the lineup in Game 1.
In his place, Jesper Boqvist, who’s suited up in 11 playoff games so far, will take the ice.
“Fortunately for us, it’s not his first time in for us in the playoffs,” head coach Paul Maurice said of Boqvist, who’s recorded five points (two goals, three assists) in his last four games. “He hasn’t been sitting for a long time. He’s had some pretty good success when he’s come in, and he fits.”
Between the pipes, Sergei Bobrovsky has been “Playoff Bob” once again.
Manning the crease for all 17 playoff games, the two-time Vezina Trophy winner has posted a 12-5 record with a 2.11 goals-against average, .912 save percentage and three shutouts.
Over his last nine starts, Bobrovsky has gone 7-2 with a .944 save percentage.
In seven games against the Oilers in last year’s Stanley Cup Final, he surrendered one or fewer goals three times, including making 23 saves in a decisive 2-1 win in Game 7.
“We’ve been through different times together,” Bobrovsky said of a third straight trip to the Cup Final. “It’s great. We’ve built the trust, the belief and the relationships. You know what those guys are capable of, and you trust 100% in them. You appreciate those kinds of guys are going with you into the final stage.”
Reaching the Stanley Cup Final for the second straight season, the Oilers eliminated the Los Angeles Kings (six games), Vegas Golden Knights (five games) and Dallas Stars (five games) to keep their crown atop the Western Conference.
Connor McDavid, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy after putting up some historic stats last year, leads the Oilers in playoff scoring with 26 points (six goals, 20 assists). The other half of Edmonton’s two-headed monster up front, Leon Draisaitl has 25 points (seven goals, 18 assists).
Not escaping the first three rounds unscathed, the Oilers will take the ice without one of their top forwards as Zach Hyman is expected to miss the series after undergoing surgery.
Injured during Game 4 of the Western Conference Final, Hyman, who scored 54 goals during the 2023-24 regular season, has 11 points and leads the playoffs with 111 hits.
“You’re not going to contain him,” forward Brad Marchand said of trying to defend McDavid, a teammate of his with Canada during the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. “When you get to watch a player like that up close and see the little things that he does that make him so special, it was incredible to see. … Yeah, he’s the best player in the world, for a reason.”
Coming off a stellar showing in the Western Conference Final, Stuart Skinner will lead the Oilers onto the ice for Game 1. Owning a 6-4 record with a .904 save percentage in this year’s playoffs, the 26-year-old went 4-1 with a .924 save percentage against Dallas.
Shaking off a slow start, he had an .810 save percentage in Round 1 before being replaced by Calvin Pickard for a stretch.
Taking a look at the special teams battle, the Panthers enter the series operating at 23.2% on the power play and 87.9% on the penalty kill, which ranks first in the playoffs. Across the ice, the Oilers are sitting at a strong 30% on the power play, but only 66% on the penalty kill.
Comfortable on the road, the Panthers have gone 8-2 away from home.
On the flip side, the Oilers are 6-1 at home.
In a series expected to have razor-thin margins, a hot start will be key in Game 1.
“Every game, the first shifts are important,” Barkov said. “We just have to be ready. They’re a really good team. They’re a fast team, so they’re going to start very fast.”
THEY SAID IT
“We had one week of time to refocus and think about what’s coming. Now we know. We know what to expect. Every single game is going to be a battle. The most important is to go one game at a time, one shift at a time.” – Aleksander Barkov on Game 1
“I think it helps a lot, for sure. Anyways, it’s a new story this year and we want to write something new. We know it’s going to be loud. It’s been loud in every building we’ve been in so far. It’s a new challenge for us.” – Anton Lundell on being ready for Rogers Place
“The core is pretty similar, but we’ve got some new players and it’s a new year. It’s going to be different.” – Gustav Forsling on the rematch with Edmonton
FIVE CATS STATS
– Seth Jones ranks second among all skates in the playoffs in total time on ice (424:35).
– Sam Bennett leads the Panthers with nine goals on the road this postseason.
– Sergei Bobrovsky posted a .935 save percentage in the Eastern Conference Final.
– Carter Verhaeghe is Florida’s all-time leader in game-winning playoff goals (12).
– The Panthers rank first in the playoffs with an 87.9% success rate on the penalty kill.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Evan Rodrigues – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Brad Marchand
Jesper Boqvist – Tomas Nosek – Jonah Gadjovich
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Seth Jones
Nate Schmidt – Dmitry Kulikov
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Vitek Vanecek
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Wednesday, June 4 at 8 p.m. ET
Where: Rogers Place – Edmonton, AB
TV: TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
Radio: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 92.1 WZZR-FM (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); Panthers App; SiriusXM Channel 220 / App & Streaming 931
Watch Party: Amerant Bank Arena
