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

Panthers Injury Report

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.

11 Jun 24 Jimm Sallivan

Oilers’ Warren Foegele Receives Game Misconduct After Dirty Hit vs. Panthers

The Edmonton Oilers will be without one of their key forwards for the remainder of Monday's Game 2 against the Florida Panthers after a bad attempt at a hit from Warren Foegele resulted in a worrisome injury to Eetu Luostarinen.

Foegele attempted to land a hit onto Luostarinen in the open ice, but misfired and ended up sticking his leg out in a desparate attempt to clip the Panthers' forward. In doing so, their legs made direct contact, and Luostarinen remained on the ground in pain after the collision before being helped off the ice. He was unable to put any weight on his leg as he was skated to the locker room.

Warren Foegele received a major penalty and a game misconduct for kneeing Luostarinen pic.twitter.com/if2eB5gSvv
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) June 11, 2024

Officials gathered and reviewed the play before determining that Foegele would be hit with a five-minute major penalty for kneeing, as well as a game misconduct which put an early end to his evening.

With Foegele ejected, Dylan Holloway served the five-minute penalty in his stead.

The absence of Foegele will be a significant loss for Edmonton as they look to even up the series in Game 2. The left winger provided 41 points across 82 games this season, scoring a career-high 20 goals. He has three points including one goal during the postseason.

Luostarinen was able to return late into the first period.

2 Jun 24 Jimm Sallivan

Panthers Hold Off Rangers in Game 6 to Lock Up Third Eastern Conference Title

For the fifth straight year, the Stanley Cup finals will have a Floridian flavor.

The Florida Panthers downed the New York Rangers 2–1 Saturday evening in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals to win the series. With the victory, the Panthers won their third conference championship and second in as many years.

Previous Florida trips to the Stanley Cup finals include 1996, when the third-year franchise was swept by the Colorado Avalanche, and 2023, when the team lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in five games.

To best the Rangers Saturday, the Panthers overcame a Herculean effort from New York goalie Igor Shesterkin. Center Sam Bennett staked Florida to a 1–0 lead at 19:10 of the first period, and right wing Vladimir Tarasenko added a second nine minutes into the third.

The Rangers opened their account with left wing Artemi Panarin's goal at 18:20 of the third period, but it was too little too late for New York's best team by points percentage since 1972.

The Panthers will meet either the Dallas Stars or Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup finals; the Oilers lead their series three games to two with Game 6 scheduled for Sunday evening.

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

Oilers Injury Report

Panthers Injury Report

Edmonton Oilers

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