For those Bruins’ fans living vicariously through unfamiliar laundry, the Stanley Cup Final comes down to Brad Marchand versus Trent Frederic.
But there is no shortage of storylines in this rematch of last season’s SCF between the Edmonton Oilers and defending champion Florida Panthers, both of whom rampaged through their respective conference finals in five-game gentleman sweeps.
The most intriguing one is whether the sublime Connor McDavid and fellow perennial Hart Trophy candidate Leon Draisaitl can fight through the big, bad Panthers and become the first Canadian-based team to secure the Cup since Patrick Roy and Montreal Canadiens did it in 1993, when mullets were still a thing.
McDavid is the most entertaining and explosive forward of this generation. To these eyes, he would be so if he played in the era of Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, too. His breakaway goal in Game 5 that went a long way toward ending the Dallas Stars season was a Picasso – full tilt, with speed merchant Roope Hintz on his tail. Overmatched goalie Casey DeSmith went for the poke check and was sliding halfway to the faceoff circle as McDavid calmly guided the puck into the net.
Draisaitl has also done his thing in these playoffs, scoring power-play goals from the usual absurd angles.
The difference between this year and past playoff seasons is the Oilers haven’t needed to rely on just McDavid and Draisaitl, even though they’re 1-2 in playoff scoring (26 and 25 points, respectively). They’ve gotten depth contributions throughout the lineup. While the loss of Zach Hyman is potentially a big one, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (5-13-18), Evander Kane (5-6-11), defenseman Evan Bouchard (6-11-17) and 40-year-old warhorse Corey Perry (7-3-10) have all been in the thick of things.
They also got back D-man Mattias Ekholm at end of the Dallas series. This observer thought the absence of Ekholm earlier in the playoffs would doom – he had changed the Edmonton dynamic that much last year. But the Oilers not only survived it, they’ve thrived, sweeping the Kings after spotting them a two-game lead, then beating a very good Vegas team in five before quickly dispatching the Stars, a lot of prognosticators’ sexy pick for the Cup.
And so far, Edmonton’s biggest bugaboo, goaltending, has held steady. After losing the job in the Kings’ series, Stuart Skinner came back to replace an injured Calvin Pickard and has made all the necessary saves.
Now comes Skinner’s and/or Pickard’s biggest challenge. The Panthers will not cede the slot area to Edmonton defenders as the Stars had, and they won’t be trying to toe-drag the puck through high traffic areas, another sin the Dallas forwards committed in their loss. They will go to were the goals are scored.
Sam Bennett appears to be on a mission. He leads the playoff goal scoring race with 10 and his elbows have remained sharp (expertly disguised, of course). There is little doubt that the UFA-to-be is going to earn himself a healthy payday on July 1.
But typical of Florida’s three-year run to the final, the Panthers are also getting contributions up and down the lineup, from expected and unexpected sources. Sasha Barkov, who no doubt will be seeing a lot of No. 97 over the next fortnight, is proving to be a very worthy centerman to take over for Patrice Bergeron as a yearly Selke frontrunner. Matthew Tkachuk, who missed the last chunk of the regular season, is getting more up to speed as the postseason has gone on. Carter Verhaeghe just scores big goals in the playoffs.
On the back end, Gustav Forsling and Aaron Eckblad have been good but they’ve gotten a boost from the stork-like Niko Mikkola as well as a reborn Seth Jones. In net, Sergei Bobrovsky has been his best self.
And then there’s the Bruin factor. Marchand, of course, leads the way, providing all sorts of energy and chipping in from his third line spot, which has looked positively freeing for the former Boston captain. But the Panthers are getting solid bottom—six help from several Black and Gold castoffs in AJ Greer, Jesper Boqvist and Tomas Nosek, who will give Barkov an occasional breather with shifts against top lines.
So which way will this series go? Like last year’s epic showdown that saw Edmonton nearly come back from a 3-0 deficit, this promises to be a great one. But get ready to party, Canada. Oilers in seven.
