Current:Home > FinancePanthers now 2 wins from the Stanley Cup, top Oilers 4-1 for 2-0 lead in title series -AssetVision
Panthers now 2 wins from the Stanley Cup, top Oilers 4-1 for 2-0 lead in title series
View
Date:2025-04-13 11:44:03
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Evan Rodrigues had two goals in the third period, Niko Mikkola and Aaron Ekblad also scored and the Florida Panthers beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 on Monday night to take a 2-0 lead in the Stanley Cup Final.
Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 18 shots for Florida, which was 1-8 all-time in Cup final games before this series started — and now is two wins away from capturing its first championship.
But the win came with a price for Florida as the Panthers lost captain Aleksander Barkov when Edmonton forward Leon Draisaitl launched toward him midway through the third period and hit him in the head. Barkov remained down for some time, needed help getting to the bench and went down the tunnel for the Florida locker room for further evaluation.
Mattias Ekholm scored and Stuart Skinner stopped 24 shots for the Oilers, who now have to buck some serious history.
Edmonton has only successfully rallied from a 2-0 deficit in a best-of-seven series once — against San Jose in Round 2 of the 2006 playoffs. And teams that start the Stanley Cup Final down 2-0 have come back to win only five times in 54 previous situations.
The series resumes with Game 3 in Edmonton on Thursday night.
Draisaitl was given only a minor penalty for roughing on the hit that knocked Barkov from the game. Rodrigues got a tip-in goal to make it 3-1, the first power-play score Edmonton allowed in its last 34 times being down a man.
Connor McDavid had a chance to get Edmonton within one on a breakaway with about 6 minutes left. He got stopped by Bobrovsky, and then he and Matthew Tkachuk tussled a bit along the boards after the play — the Panthers still steaming over the hit on Barkov.
Emotions were high all night. Edmonton’s Warren Foegele was ejected in the first period for a knee-on-knee hit that knocked Florida’s Eetu Luostarinen from the game briefly; that ejection, plus an injury to Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse left them with only 11 forwards and five defensemen for much of the game.
Rodrigues scored early in the third off a turnover for a 2-1 lead, setting the tone for yet another Florida comeback. The Panthers — who trailed 1-0 after 20 minutes — are now an NHL-best 5-2 when trailing after one period in these playoffs.
Ekblad sealed it with an empty-netter with 2:28 left.
Just like Game 1, one team cashed in on its first shot. It was Florida on Saturday, and Edmonton this time.
There wasn’t much to it: Ekholm skated nearly the full length of the ice with the teams playing 4-on-4, taking a harmless-looking shot that got between Bobrovsky’s leg pads and squirted into the back of the net. McDavid — playing in the building where he got drafted in 2015 — got one of the assists on the goal, his 27th assist of this postseason.
Midway through the second, the Panthers knotted it up. Mikkola had two shots on a shift; one was at the wrong net, and the other more than atoned for that near-blunder.
Moments after he inadvertently wheeled a backhand toward Bobrovsky — who was alert enough to save his teammate from the embarrassment of an own goal — Mikkola handled a delivery from Anton Lundell and blasted it past Skinner to pull Florida into a 1-1 tie.
Shots were 22-7 Florida after 40 minutes, the Oilers — who led the league in shots on goal this season — being held to a season-low entering the third. Bobrovsky was tested a ton more in the third than he was in the first two periods, but was up to the task again.
And Florida, for the first time, is two wins from the Cup.
___
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
veryGood! (49)
Related
- A White House order claims to end 'censorship.' What does that mean?
- An indicator that often points to recession could be giving a false signal this time
- Activists Target Public Relations Groups For Greenwashing Fossil Fuels
- Inside Clean Energy: Vote Solar’s Leader Is Stepping Down. Here’s What He and His Group Built
- Meta releases AI model to enhance Metaverse experience
- Earthjustice Is Suing EPA Over Coal Ash Dumps, Which Leak Toxins Into Groundwater
- Amazon Prime Day Early Deal: Save 47% on the TikTok-Loved Solawave Skincare Wand That Works in 5 Minutes
- Prices: What goes up, doesn't always come down
- Have Dry, Sensitive Skin? You Need To Add These Gentle Skincare Products to Your Routine
- Why can't Twitter and TikTok be easily replaced? Something called 'network effects'
Ranking
- 'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
- Inflation eased in March but prices are still climbing too fast to get comfortable
- Anwar Hadid Sparks Romance Rumors With Model Sophia Piccirilli
- Child dies from brain-eating amoeba after visiting hot spring, Nevada officials say
- Trump wants to turn the clock on daylight saving time
- Euphora Star Sydney Sweeney Says This Moisturizer “Is Like Putting a Cloud on Your Face”
- Gen Z is the most pro union generation alive. Will they organize to reflect that?
- Volkswagen recalls 143,000 Atlas SUVs due to problems with the front passenger airbag
Recommendation
House passes bill to add 66 new federal judgeships, but prospects murky after Biden veto threat
Climate Change Poses a Huge Threat to Railroads. Environmental Engineers Have Ideas for How to Combat That
State Tensions Rise As Water Cuts Deepen On The Colorado River
In Philadelphia, Mass Transit Officials Hope Redesigning Bus Routes Will Boost Post-Pandemic Ridership
Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
5 things to know about Saudi Arabia's stunning decision to cut oil production
Judge rebukes Fox attorneys ahead of defamation trial: 'Omission is a lie'
Businesses face more and more pressure from investors to act on climate change