The Edmonton Oilers suffered a 4-1 loss to the Florida Panthers on Monday night. The Panthers found another level and Edmonton didn’t match it. After outshooting Florida in Game 1, Connor McDavid and the rest of the roster struggled to put shots on net and generate offense. Now down 2-0 in the series, they’ll realistically need to win both at home if they want to win the series.
Injuries and penalties were part of the story. For the Oilers, Darnell Nurse took a hit and left the ice several times, barely able to play the rest of the way. he managed only 4:20 in the game. Evander Kane was clearly bothered by his issues. Warren Foegele was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct for a knee-on-knee hit.
On Florida’s side, Aleksander Barkov left late and didn’t return. Evan Rodrigues looked to be hurt but returned and scored twice.
Both McDavid and Draisaitl said the Oilers need to be better. Edmonton knew they needed to have a better game because the Panthers were going to step up their effort level. The Oilers failed to do so and lacked rhythm and seemed out of sync from the get-go. Florida played a greasy game that limited the Oilers. Through 40 minutes, Edmonton generated only seven shots.
The Oilers Fighting Uphill Battle Now
“It is supposed to be hard. It is supposed to be difficult. I’m excited to see what our group is made of,” said McDavid after the game. He added, “I’m excited to see our group come together, excited to see us fight through adversity, and looking forward to people doubting us again. We are good with our backs against the wall.” Draisaitl said, “We can be better. It starts with me.”
It’s not clear if the NHL will look at an elbow delivered by Draisaitl to Barkov. If Barkov is ruled out for any extended amount of time, the Panthers might ask. Sam Carrick also delivered a spear at the end of the game and Aaron Ekblad applied a chokehold to Evan Bouchard, literally trying to cinch in the choke when Bouchard tapped because he couldn’t breathe.
The Oilers said something similar coming into Game 2, noting their ability to bounce back after a loss. Edmonton dropped the ball on Monday night. As Daniel Nugent-Bowman tweeted, “Teams trailing 2-0 in the Stanley Cup Final have won just five times in 54 tries. The last time there was a comeback of his nature was in 2011 when Boston defeated Vancouver.”
The Oilers will have an extra day to get prepared for Game 3 and be ready to show they won’t go down without a fight.
Next: Oilers Bringing in Music Icons For Games 3 and 4 in Edmonton
