For the third straight game, the Edmonton Oilers averted playoff elimination and are now one victory away from winning their first Stanley Cup since 1990.
The Oilers defeated the Florida Panthers 5-1 in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final roat Rogers Place on Friday, and they have now come back from a 3-0 series deficit to force a decisive Game 7 on Monday in Sunrise, Florida.
They did so without a single point nor shot on goal from Connor McDavid. It’s the first time in McDavid’s career that the Oilers won a game when he failed to do either in the same contest. And as such, this will be only the third time in NHL history a team has forced Game 7 in the Cup Final after losing the first three games, and first since 1945.
Only the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs completed the epic comeback from 3-0 down to win the Stanley Cup.
That said, let’s explore the winners and losers from Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final.
Related: 2024 Stanley Cup Final: Key takeaways from Oilers’ 5-1 win in Game 6
Winner – Stuart Skinner (Edmonton Oilers)
Stuart Skinner made 20 saves and allowed only one goal Friday in the latest most important game of his career, one that followed similar results in Games 4 and 5 of this series. He barely broke a sweat facing only two shots in the first period, but was a difference maker the rest of the way, outplaying Sergei Bobrovsky yet again. Skinner made two massive saves in the second period, one each against Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, when he stopped all 11 shots. He caught a break when Barkov’s goal early in the second was overturned by video review for being offsides. But it was an overall terrific night for the 25-year-old Edmonton native. And how about that spinning save late in the third period, followed by his touch pass that led to Skinner picking up an assist on Darnell Nurse’s empty-net goal?
Loser – Sergei Bobrovsky (Florida Panthers)
Listen, Sergei Bobrovsky didn’t receive much help from his listless teammates in Game 6. But at $10 million per season, Bobrovsky must be able to steal games in which the Panthers are not up to par. And on Friday, there were no wow moments for Bobrovsky, no saves that were so outstanding they’d lift his teammates. He was beaten again on a breakaway, this time by Zach Hyman, and Warren Foegele was wide open to score the first goal. Hard to blame the goalie. But you’re trying to win the Stanley Cup, so an out-of-this-world save or two is needed along the way and Bobrovsky couldn’t deliver that again in Game 6.
Winner – Kris Knoblauch (Edmonton Oilers)
Kris Knoblauch has done a helluva’ job guiding the Oilers back into this series. The rookie coach again pushed all the right buttons in Game 6. Despite winning two straight games, he tinkered a bit with his line combinations, and it paid off right away when reunited teammates Leon Draisatil and Warren Foegele teamed up on the first goal. Then when the Panthers scored 10 seconds after the Oilers took a 2-0 lead in the opening minute of the second period, Knoblauch correctly challenged the on-ice call and was rewarded when the goal was taken off the board after the play was ruled offsides. It was a gutsy decision by Knoblauch, and his staff deserves credit for quickly alerting him to the chance they could get the goal overturned. It was a game-changing decision.
Winner/Loser – NHL video replay
NHL video replay was a winner Friday because it appeared to show that Aleksander Barkov was a hair offsides before scoring on a rebound that would’ve cut the Panthers deficit to 2-1 under a minute into the first period. But is this really what the League wants? With how fast the game is played, blowing up frames of video to see that Barkov’s skate may have been, possibly, a disputed touch ahead of the puck is worth overturning a goal and completing changing momentum in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final? This is an example of the “egregious” missed calls the League didn’t want staining the game? So, yes, NHL video replay was both a winner and a loser Friday.
Winner – Rogers Place (Edmonton Oilers)
It’d be hard to find a better atmosphere in the NHL than Rogers Place. From the massive mosh pit outside the arena, where Oilers fans have watched on the big screen for both home and away games. To the unreal vibe inside Rogers Place, a simply deafening sold-out crowd again in Game 6 helping the home team to another crucial win. This has been a simply special spring, and now summer, in the Oil City. And that was quite the fitting final home game of 2023-24 for the Oilers on Friday, an incredible send off to Game 7 in Florida.
Loser – Matthew Tkachuk (Florida Panthers)
It hasn’t been a great Stanley Cup Final for Matthew Tkachuk. But it looked like he was back to being the big-game difference maker after his standout performance in Game 5. However, he took another step back Friday, sloppy turnovers and uninspiring play dotting his Game 6 performance. Tkachuk was held off the score sheet again, had one shot on goal and finished minus-3.
Winner – Oilers penalty kill
The Oilers penalty kill was a perfect 3-for-3 in Game 6 and is now 19-for-20 in the series. It has been a massive difference maker in the series, and throughout the postseason, for Edmonton, which sits atop the League at an incredible 94.1 percent success rate, allowing only four goals this postseason in 68 times shorthanded. Edmonton had a big kill in the first period, les than a minute after they took a 1-0 lead. And another in the second up 2-0. The Panthers power play couldn’t look any more confused against Connor Brown and Co., who’ve been a buzzsaw on the PK.
Loser – Sam Bennett (Florida Panthers)
Sam Bennett was minus-4 with zero points and one shot on goal. Worse, the Panthers forward wasn’t his agitating himself in an ineffective night. He’s made a big difference throughout the postseason but has gone quiet as this series has progressed.
Winner – Warren Foegele (Edmonton Oilers)
Warren Foegele scored the hugely-important first goal at 7:27 of the first period and later assisted on Ryan McLeod’s empty-netter that made it 4-1. Foegele quickly got up after a collision with Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad to receive a gorgeous pass from Leon Draisaitl, and then made no mistake on his shot to make it 1-0. He, McLeod and Adam Henrique were again among the Edmonton goal scorers as the secondary scoring continues to be a major storyline for the Oilers.
Loser – Brandon Montour (Florida Panthers)
Brandon Montour had 73 points for the Panthers in 2022-23 and appeared to be on the cusp of being a consistent top offensive defenseman in the NHL. But a shoulder injury and subsequent surgery seems to have derailed his offensive game, and he fell to 33 points this past season. It’s tough to watch him be such a non factor in big games, like Game 6, from an offensive perspective. He managed one shot and had already been removed from the top power-play unit.
