Oilers vs. Panthers NHL Expert Prediction and Odds for Stanley Cup Final Game 1

June 6, 2024 Jimm Sallivan

The Edmonton Oilers are four wins away from ending Canada’s Stanley Cup drought. The country is seeking its first NHL Championship since 1993 when the Montreal Canadiens were able to win it all.

Standing in their way is the Florida Panthers, a state that has now won five-straight Eastern Conference Finals, with the Tampa Bay Lightning winning two Stanley Cups along the way.

Game 1 is set to take place on Saturday night and I’m here to break down everything you need to know to bet on the opening stanza.

Odds listed are via FanDuel Sportsbook

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Oilers Injury Report

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Edmonton Oilers

Stuart Skinner: All eyes will be on Connor McDavid, but I would argue the most important player in this game is the Oilers’ goaltender, Stuart Skinner. When he brings his “A” game, the Oilers are near unbeatable, but he hasn’t done that at times. Edmonton almost lost to the Vancouver Canucks in the second round almost solely due to poor play from Skinner. Whether or not they win the Cup may just come down to his performance.

Florida Panthers

Carter Verhaeghe: Carther Vergaeghe enters the Stanley Cup Final as the Panthers’ leading scorer in the playoffs with nine goals. If the Panthers want to beat the Oilers, they need to find ways to score goals on a consistent basis and Verhaeghe may be the key to that happening.

I’m backing the Oilers to win the Stanley Cup and I like them to win the first game of the series, but my best bet is on the total. I like the UNDER 5.5.

The Oilers deployed a defensive style of play that helped them win Game 5 and Game 6 against the Dallas Stars. They sacrificed offensive rushes to stay home and while the puck was in their own end, they play a tight zone that forced the Stars to take low-quality shots from the perimeter. That helped Stuart Skinner as they prevented the Stars from getting high-danger scoring opportunities.

If they use the same strategy against a Panthers team, that plays a similar style to the Stars, we could be in for a low-scoring series.

Let’s also remember the Panthers were one of the best defensive teams in the NHL during the regular season. They allowed just 2.39 goals per 60 minutes, the best mark in the entire league, while also giving up only 10.68 high-danger scoring chances per 60 minutes, which ranked seventh.

I’ll take the Oilers and the UNDER in Game 1.

Pick: Oilers (+114) and UNDER 5.5 goals (-104)

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

You can check out all of Iain’s bets here!

7 Jun 24 Jimm Sallivan

Who Has Scored the Most Goals in Stanley Cup Final History?

The 2024 Stanley Cup Final is set to get underway on Saturday, with the Florida Panthers seeking the franchise's first ever championship, while the Edmonton Oilers look to clinch their first title since 1990.

For the Oilers, Connor McDavid will look to open his Stanley Cup Final goalscoring tally, having yet to feature in the big game throughout his esteemed nine-year career. He'll have plenty of work to do if he's looking to catch some of the sport's longtime record holders.

In NHL history, the Stanley Cup Final has largely been dominated by the "Original Six" teams. The Montreal Canadiens have won 24 championships, followed by the 13 won by the Toronto Maple Leafs, 11 to the Detroit Red Wings and six for both the Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks.

So, it stands to reason that the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer in the Stanley Cup Finals, most of them, in fact, come from the Habs.

Canadiens legend and NHL Hall of Famer Maurice Richard, the individual whom the Rocket Richard Trophy was named after, holds the record for most goals in the Stanley Cup Final with 34. He's featured in a total of 58 games in the championship, winning eight Cups in his illustrious career.

The all-time top 10 leading goalscorers list looks like this:

PLAYER NAME	GOALS SCORED IN STANLEY CUP FINAL
Maurice Richard, Canadiens	34
Jean Beliveau, Canadiens	30
Bernie Geoffrion, Canadiens	24
Yvan Cournoyer, Canadiens	21
Henri Richard, Canadiens	21
Jacques Lemaire, Canadiens	21
Ted Lindsay, Red Wings	19
Wayne Gretzky, Oilers, Kings	18
Gordie Howe, Red Wings	18
Mike Bossy, Islanders	17

Among the top 10, Gretzky played most recently, and his last Stanley Cup Final goal came all the way back in 1993, more than 30 years ago.

Among active NHL players, you'd have to go a bit farther down the rankings to find the first one.

Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin, who has eight goals in 25 games in the Stanley Cup Final, ranks first among active players. He sits 54th all time. After Malkin, the likes of Patrick Kane, Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and Ondrej Palat all have seven.

Corey Perry's five goals in the Stanley Cup Final are the most among players participating in the championship series this year.

5 Jun 24 Jimm Sallivan

Stanley Cup Final Ticket Prices: Cheapest and Most Expensive Tickets

The 2024 Stanley Cup Final is ready for the puck drop, as the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers will battle in the best-of-seven series to decide who will hoist the most important trophy in hockey.

The Panthers cruised through the Eastern Conference bracket, defeating the in-state rival Tampa Bay Lightning in five games, the Boston Bruins in six and the New York Rangers in six to punch a ticket to their second straight Stanley Cup Final appearance and third in franchise history. Florida is led by 35-year-old goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, who has allowed just 2.20 goals per contest across 17 games this postseason.

The Oilers defeated the Los Angeles Kings in five games, the Vancouver Canucks in seven and the Dallas Stars in six to make their first Stanley Cup Final appearance since 2006. Connor McDavid, the six-time NHL All-Star, five-time Art Ross Trophy winner and three-time Hart Memorial Trophy winner, is chasing the one piece of hardware that has alluded him his entire nine-year career—Lord Stanley's Cup.

It's shaping up to be a memorable Stanley Cup Final. So, what's the ticket price to get in the door? Here's a breakdown for each game (ticket prices as of June 5):

Most expensive tickets

If you're looking to buy a ticket to Saturday’s Game 1 at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla., and have some cheddar to spend, look no further than the second row in Section Club 29. Tickets there are going for $8,642 apiece before fees. Otherwise, most tickets in the lower bowl will cost anywhere between $1,500 and $4,200.

Cheapest tickets

The Panthers have won just one home game in the Stanley Cup Final in the club's 30-year history. They were swept by the Colorado Avalanche in four games in 1996 and won Game 3 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights before losing the series.

If you're looking for the cheapest ticket in the door to witness a chance at history, it'll cost you at least $445 to do so. Those "cheap" seats are located in the upper deck, the 15th row in sections 326 and 310—both of which sit behind each goal.

Most expensive tickets

The Panthers will be looking to either extend their series lead to 2–0 or head to Edmonton with a split series with a win in Game 2 on Monday. The most expensive ticket into the arena June 10 is $6,638 before fees, which will land you in the first row of Section Club 3, located in the club level parallel with the net the Panthers will occupy twice in the game.

Cheapest tickets

The cheapest way to get into Amerant Bank Arena for Game 2 is, once again, $445 before fees. Those tickets will seat you in the 10th row of Section 308, which overlooks one of the nets from an angle in the upper deck.

The least expensive ticket in the lower bowl currently is going for $617—in the 27th row of Section 109.

Most expensive tickets

Both teams will take the eight-plus hour flight from South Florida to Edmonton for Game 3, which is set to begin June 13 at 8 p.m. ET at Rogers Place.

The most expensive ticket listed on Ticketmaster is currently priced at $11,595 in Canadian dollars, or $8,466 in U.S. dollars. Those seats are in the third row of Section 103, right behind the Oilers' bench. Fans sitting there will have a decent chance of being pictured on television behind an elated—or grumpy—Edmonton bench depending on how the game unfolds.

Cheapest tickets

If you thought the $445 from the first two games in Florida was too much to see the Stanley Cup Final in person, we have some bad news. The cheapest ticket for Game 3 is currently going for $1,271.36 in Canadian dollars, or $928 in U.S. dollars. Those seats are located in the eighth row of Section 208, in the upper deck behind the net that the Oilers will attack twice in the game.

Most expensive tickets

The country of Canada is currently in a 31-year drought without one of its teams bringing the Stanley Cup home. The last team to do it was the Montreal Canadiens, who defeated the Kings in five games in 1993. The Canucks (1994, 2011), Flames (2004), Oilers (2006), Senators (2007) and Canadiens (2021) all have fallen just short of hoisting Lord Stanley's Cup since then.

If the Oilers claim the first three games of the series, they can end Canada's drought and claim the Stanley Cup in Game 4 at home on June 15.

Fans in attendance will pay for the chance to witness history, too. Per Stubhub, the most expensive tickets for Game 4 are listed at $18,441 apiece in Section 127. Fans sitting there will get a great view behind the net that the Panthers will shoot at in two of the game's three periods.

Cheapest tickets

Ticket pricing is subject to change based on how the first three games of the series unfold, but as of June 5, hockey fans can buy their way into Rogers Place for $960. Those seats are in the seventh row of Section 215, located in the upper deck over the net that the Oilers will shoot at twice.

13 Jun 24 Jimm Sallivan

Canadian Air Traffic Controllers Joke About Diverting Panthers Plane Ahead of Game 3

The Florida Panthers have proven a major headache for the Edmonton Oilers thus far in the Stanley Cup Final.

First, Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky dominated Game 1 as Florida scored a 3-0 shutout win. Then, a big third period from center Evan Rodrigues paced the Panthers in Game 2.

Ahead of Game 3 Thursday in Edmonton, drastic measures appear to have been placed on the table. Among them: diverting Florida's team plane from Edmonton, as Canadian air traffic controllers joked about doing Wednesday.

"I've got about a two-hour hold for you, or whatever it would take that you'd be low enough on fuel that you'll have to divert from Edmonton," a controller said over the radio in audio posted by Andy Slater of WMEN-AM in Royal Palm Beach, Fla. "Mention it to your passengers, maybe they'll figure it out."

NEW: Florida Panthers pilots were jokingly told by a Canadian air traffic controller to run low on fuel so the team wouldn’t be able land in Edmonton.
Pilots from other flights join in on the conversation.
(h/t @JOSE97LUIS) pic.twitter.com/IlbauIcVJM
— Andy Slater (@AndySlater) June 13, 2024

That appeared to be followed by authorization for the plane to land in Edmonton "against (the controller's) better judgment."

As Slater noted, pilots from other flights proceeded to join in on the conversation.

"Maybe you can divert them," one noted.

"I threatened them with a hold until they would have to divert," the original controller said, to laughter over multiple radios.

"The last call you guys need is (NHL commissioner) Gary Bettman calling the (air traffic control)," one replied.

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Oilers vs. Panthers NHL Expert Prediction and Odds for Stanley Cup Final Game 1

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Panthers Injury Report

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