In their search for a Stanley Cup the Edmonton Oilers are facing a daunting sequel: 9 Things

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Well…

It all comes down to this.

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After an agonizing summer, a grinding regular season and a post-season filled with sparkling highs and numbing lows the Edmonton Oilers are right back where they started twelve months ago…

With their backs against the wall, facing elimination versus the Florida Panthers.

Will the sequel end the same way the original did?

9 Things

9. The Edmonton Oilers have allowed two or more goals in the First Period of all five games of this Stanley Cup Finals. That is not a recipe for winning.

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8. And it gets worse. Over five games the Florida Panthers have played 200:25 with the lead. For the Edmonton Oilers? 33:51. When you are chasing that much, the wear, tear and odds have a way of catching up to you.

7. But then there is this sobering statistic: In the history of the Stanley Cup Playoffs the club who wins Game Five of the Finals has won the Cup seventy-three percent of the time. So, the odds are heavily in the Panthers’ favor.

6. However…eight teams have rallied from 3-2 deficits to win Best of Seven Stanley Cup Finals. They range from the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs to the 2011 Boston Bruins. In between that were some truly powerhouse clubs such as the 2009 Penguins, 2001 Avalanche and 1971 Montreal Canadiens. So, you’re saying there is a chance?!

5. I supported starting Calvin Pickard in goal for Game Five. And if I had it to do all over again, I would not do any differently. Goaltending did not win or lose Game Five for either side. All four that got past Pickard were Grade “A” chances against. But for an elimination game I do think you start your #1 guy. And that is Stuart Skinner.

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4. In fact, I think the decision-making process for Kris Knoblauch for the next game is relatively easy. You play your best players. Period. That means Skinner over Pickard. That also means John Klingberg over Troy Stecher. Stecher gives you everything. Klingberg can elevate to a higher level. I think it also means leaving Viktor Arvidsson in. And that is probably it.

3. It would have been very nearly impossible for Edmonton to do this given the cap limitations. But I wrote near the trade deadline that Brad Marchand would be a smart add. As we watch this fierce competitor make a major impact on these Stanley Cup Finals, I think any team that considered it but eventually went “Nah, we think he is done” was. Dead. Wrong.

2. In order to force a Game Seven, the Oilers best players need to be better than the Panthers’ best players. I do not mean that as a criticism. Edmonton is not here without Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard. But it is true that champions are those able to elevate their games at the most critical of times. Well…it is time. It is their chance to write their own histories.

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1.I felt the Oilers played “tentative” in Game Five. And look: The Florida Panthers are a hell of a team who played a hell of a game. The other guy deserves a lot of credit. Probably most of it, in fact. But it felt like the Edmonton Oilers played that entire game on Saturday night trying not to make a mistake, trying not to take a penalty, trying not to lose. Things that have plagued them all series.

Game Six is their opportunity to lay it all on the line and play not just to survive (which they certainly will be doing) but to win. That means things like playing with confidence and pace. It means moving the game off the walls and back into the middle of the ice. To execute on the Power Play with precision and purpose. Playing to their strengths.

So rest up, men. Make a plan. Then show up Tuesday believing you can win. You won a Game Six a year ago. Doing it again is your only task right now. Because?

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Because you can not win Game Seven until you get there.

Now on Bluesky @kurtleavins.bsky.social. Also, find me on Threads @kleavins, Twitter @KurtLeavins, Instagram at LeavinsOnHockey, and Mastodon at KurtLeavins@mstdn.social. This article is not AI generated.

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In memory of Bruce McCurdy, 1955-2025.

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