After a long wait since the end of the conference finals, the Stanley Cup Final between the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers is officially underway. The rematch of the championship series from last season is one of the most highly-anticipated finals in recent years, and it wasted no time providing fans with some fireworks.

It only took Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl one minute and six seconds to get the scoring started in Game 1 on Wednesday night in Edmonton. After a barrage of shots directed at Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, Draisaitl finally secured a rebound with an open net and punched it in from just right of the crease.

Draisaitl didn't score a single goal in the entire seven-game series against the Panthers last season, so he will be feeling good that he was able to open up the scoring in the series this season.

After Draisaitl got the scoring started, fans on social media went crazy about the Oilers jumping in front.

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Unfortunately for Draisaitl and the Oilers, that early goal didn't keep them in the lead for very long. Sam Bennett deflected in a somewhat controversial goal after getting tripped in front of the net to tie the game at one, and the Panthers capitalized on a failed challenge with a power play goal from Brad Marchand just a few minutes later to take a 2-1 lead at the end of the first period.

The Oilers will want to make up the ground and take Game 1 on their home ice, especially after what happened in 2024. The Panthers took the first three games of the Stanley Cup Final last year, and while the Oilers nearly made the comeback, the hole proved to be too deep to climb out of.

However, this Panthers team is arguably the best in hockey and it will take everything the Oilers have to knock them off. That will likely take even more production on offense from Draisaitl in order for the Oilers to come back in Game 1 and get the job done over the course of the series.