The Edmonton Oilers have done it again. Connor McDavid scored four points in Game 5 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final to force the Florida Panthers into a Game 6 back in Edmonton. McDavid now has eight points in his last two games, and 42 in the postseason. And he has left teammate Zach Hyman in awe of his abilities on the ice.
Hyman spoke with Sportsnet following his team's Game 5 victory on Tuesday night. He was asked about the performances of his captain in Games 4 and 5. The Michigan product called McDavid “special” during this interview after the win over the Panthers.
“Connor doing Connor things,” Hyman told Sportsnet on Tuesday night. “That's what makes him special. He's able to elevate his game at the most important times. (He's) the biggest reason for why we've come so far. We're not here without him. He continues to drive the bus for us.”
Connor McDavid leads Oilers to Game 5 win
Edmonton had all of the momentum in the world following their 8-1 win in Game 4. And Connor McDavid stated that his goal for Game 5 was to “drag them (the Panthers) back to Alberta.” Well, he and the Oilers came out of the gates looking to do exactly that.
The scoring started when Connor Brown got loose on a breakaway. He made a move that opened up enough space to left the puck over Florida goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. It was a shorthanded goal that gave Edmonton a 1-0 lead early in the contest, and made history in the process.
Edmonton could not add to their lead before the first intermission. But they got a much-needed goal early in the second period. Zach Hyman scored after deflecting a shot from Evan Bouchard with his leg. The Oilers added a third goal when McDavid found the back of the net from a weird angle.
The Panthers did show some life after that. Matthew Tkachuk scored off of a turnover to make it 3-1. And while the Oilers regained their three-goal advantage, they lost it just 14 seconds later. Florida peppered Stuart Skinner with shots as they looked to break the Edmonton puck-stopper. However, he stood tall, allowing the Oilers to keep the lead through the second period.
Florida's intense pressure paid off in the third, though. Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson finally slotted one home past Skinner to make it a 4-3 game. The Florida crowd was on their feet behind their team, but Edmonton locked it down. In the end, McDavid scored an empty net goal after an unreal effort from Matthew Tkachuk to keep it out initially. The Oilers claimed a 5-3 win on the road to, as they wanted, drag the Panthers back to Alberta for Game 6.
Oilers continue to find comfort under pressure
Edmonton is no stranger to having its back against the wall. They were down 3-2 to the Vancouver Canucks in the second round before winning in seven games. They went down 2-1 to the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final before winning in six. In the early stages of the season, the Oilers were actually one of the worst teams in the league. In each scenario, they found a way to bounce back.
There has been a theme with Edmonton players about being comfortable playing under pressure. Hyman alluded to this after Tuesday's win when describing his team's reaction to Florida's third goal. “They got that third one, and we settled in a little bit actually. Which is kind of crazy. But we settled in and didn't give them too much after that,” he told Sportsnet after Game 5.
Their back has been this close to the wall, though. Against the Canucks, it was a tight series. While they were facing elimination, they also only needed two wins. However, they went down 3-0 against the Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final. If they want to win the Stanley Cup, they need to rattle off four straight wins. They are halfway there at this point.
Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman have helped the Oilers stage a comeback. And they now have all of the momentum heading into Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. Edmonton will host the Panthers at Rogers Place on Friday night with puck drop currently scheduled for 8 PM Eastern Time.
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