The Oilers are trying to become the first team in 82 years to win the Stanley Cup after falling behind 3-0 in the final. The 1941-42 Toronto Maple Leafs are the only team to successfully complete the comeback, defeating the Detroit Red Wings.
The Oilers are the third team in NHL history and the first since the Red Wings in 1945 to force a Game 7 in the final after trailing 3-0.
Edmonton could become the fifth team in NHL history to win a best-of-7 series in any round after losing the first three games.
“Of course, when you’re down 3-0, you’re going to say you believe, but we really believe in each other and the ability to win just one game at a time,” Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said. “That’s what it’s all about. You don’t have to worry about winning two or three or four, you just have to win that game, and I think we all have that belief that if we play our best on any given night, we can win, so that was “It’s our focus, and we’ve got ourselves back in a good place.”
Aleksander Barkov scored and Sergei Bobrovsky made 16 saves for the Eastern Conference champion Panthers, who were 0-for-3 on the power play and fell to 1-for-19 with two goals short in the series.
“Right now, if you walk into a room, there’s not a lot of happy people,” Florida coach Paul Morris said. “It doesn’t have to be okay tonight. You’ve been defeated. You feel it. It hurts. You lick your wounds and we’ll start rebuilding that tomorrow. But who you are tonight means nothing to who you go to. Two days from now.”
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