The Stanley Cup Playoffs continued last night. It was game two of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers. The Panthers were leading the series going into last nights game. They won game one to take the series. Game two was in Florida. The Panthers look to take a two game lead in the series with the help of their home crowd. The Oilers looked to tie the series after a disappointing game one. Lingering over this game was that teams that go 0-2 in the Stanley Cup Finals are 5-49 all time.
It was a rainy day in Florida as the Florida Panthers took on the Edmonton Oilers in game two of the Stanley Cup Finals. The Panthers won game one 3-0. They shut out the Oilers in the opening game of the series. It was a shock. The Oilers dominated game one but found themselves on the losing end. The Oilers did switch some things up on defense heading into this game. The Panthers were trying to repeat the magic of game one. The Oilers and their fans were optimistic going into this game. The Panthers fanbase and players were already acting like they won the cup after game one.
Halfway through the first period, #37 Warren Foegele of the Edmonton Oilers received a five minute major for kneeing Eetu Luostarinen and a ten minute misconduct. This was not what the Oilers wanted early in the game. The Oilers would be without Foegele for the rest of the game. Luostarinen would return later in the game.
The Panthers powerplay would turn into a four on four as Panthers player #91 Oliver Ekman-Larsson took a tripping penalty. With eight minutes left in the third period, Mattias Ekholm scored to give the Oilers the lead. His goal was assisted by #97 Connor McDavid and #2 Evan Bouchard. This was the Oilers first goal and lead in the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals. The Oilers had a 1-0 Lead after the first period.
Halfway through the second period, #77 Niko Mikkola scored for the Panthers to tie the game. His goal was assisted by #15 Anton Lundell and #10 Vladimir Tarasenko. The score was tied at 1-1 heading into the third period.
Four minutes in the third period, #17 Evan Rodrigues scored to give the Panthers the lead. His goal was unassisted.
With nine minutes left in the third period, #29 Leon Draisaitl of the Oilers took a penalty after a hard hit on #16 Aleksander Barkov. It is only a big deal because it was a big hit and Panthers fans are not happy about it.
With seven minutes left in the game #17 Evan Rodrigues scored to give the Panthers a two goal lead. His goal was assisted by #15 Anton Lundell and #91 Oliver Ekman Larsson.
With two minutes left in the game #5 Aaron Ekblad scored an empty net goal to give the Panthers a three goal lead. His goal was assisted by #9 Sam Bennett. The Oilers would take multiple penalties within the last two minutes of the game. The final score was 4-1 Panthers. The Florida Panthers now have a 2-0 series lead in the Stanley Cup Finals.
The entire conversation right now is about the Edmonton Oilers and how they are underperforming. The conversation is not one bit about the Panthers. Are the Oilers underperforming? Not in my opinion. Their defensive mistakes are costing them wins. Their defensive mistakes have been there all playoffs. Defensive mistakes and issues in net have plagued the Oilers since 2006. The Panthers second goal is as clear as it gets that the Oilers have issues on defense. Instead of looking up and properly clearing the puck, the Oilers defender just gives the puck right back to the Panthers player. The Oilers are also struggling to find space. When they do have space, they do not shoot the puck. The Panthers have done an ok job with that. The Oilers also did not come out with the same energy.
I do not like to be too critical of the officials on here too much. There were plenty of missed calls. I knew Warren Foegele was going to be ejected before he stepped foot in the penalty box. I do think that both players on that play stuck their legs out. Knowing the NHL and how they call knee on knee contact (especially with a player going down) I knew he would be gone. On the Draisaitl hit, the correct call was made just because he left his feet. He relatively kept his elbow down. It is only in slow motion from one angle that his elbow looks like it’s going to his head. I’ve seen the hit two hundred times now. I do not think it should be a suspension considering that there were other similar hits in the game that resulted in no calls by the officials. Giving the Oilers number two player a suspension (especially if it takes him out for the rest of the series) will give Oilers fans justification to blame the officials and the NHL if the Oilers lose this series. On the extreme end it could cause another riot in Edmonton or worse. The penalties being called were largely one sided as the Oilers ended the game with forty-five penalty minutes while the Panthers only had twelve. Not making calls when players are getting hit in the head or behind the play is bad. It does not matter what side you are on.
The Panthers are playing dirty. They were on the receiving end of a lot. They got away with a lot more in game two. It should not be that hard to beat a team at this level who spends forty-five minutes in the penalty box. For at least half of this game the Panthers did not have to worry about the Oilers generating or sustaining offense. The Panthers have been good in this series when it comes to capitalizing on the Oilers defensive mistakes. Their goaltending has been a lot more consistent than the Oilers. They said they have been winning while not playing their best hockey in this series. That is a lie. They have done better to shut down the Oilers so far than any other team they have played in the playoffs. They are taking away space. That is one thing that I have not seen them do with any other team. From there they can create better offense. The Panthers are also winning the aggressiveness battle. They are getting the calls to go their way while continuing to be more and more aggressive. Baiting players into penalties is the main way to win the aggressive side of the game. Not only is that giving the Panthers the better scoring opportunities, but it takes away the Oilers offensive opportunities.
One of the biggest things to come out of this game was the headlock play. One of the Panthers players put one of the Oilers players in a headlock. Majority of what I have seen has been making fun of the Oilers player for trying to tap out. It was a coward thing for the Panthers player to put the Oilers player in a headlock instead of fighting him. It is a very dangerous thing to put someone in a headlock in hockey. The main concern I have is that the player in the headlock has no control over what is happening. That player has no way to protect themself. If someone wants to do something, fight someone. At this point in the series, I am sick of everyone grabbing each other and not doing anything. The Panthers should have dropped the gloves after the knee-on-knee play. Send the message that plays like that are not ok. After a couple of no calls and the Panthers going after McDavid the Oilers needed to drop the gloves. Fighting is in hockey is to police the game and create momentum shifts. If Draisaitl does not get a suspension he will become the main target of the Panthers aggression. The Oilers are not protecting their players right now so that could end badly.
Game three of the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals will be on Thursday, June 13th, 2024. Puck drop is scheduled for 5:00 PM. That game will be in Edmonton.
The Washington Capitals, Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Islanders, Winnipeg Jets, Los Angeles Kings, Nashville Predators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes, Boston Bruins, Colorado Avalanche, Vancouver Canucks, New York Rangers, and Dallas Stars have been eliminated from the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The New York Rangers, Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes, Colorado Avalanche, Edmonton Oilers, Vancouver Canucks, Boston Bruins, and Dallas Stars advanced to the second round.
The New York Rangers and Florida Panthers advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Dallas Stars and Edmonton Oilers advanced to the Western Conference Finals.
The Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers have advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals.
Zac Electrifly 
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