SUNRISE, Fla. -- The Edmonton Oilers feel they proved something in their 3-0 loss to the Florida Panthers in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday and that they can build on it moving forward in the best-of-7 series.
“I know not many people gave us a chance in this series, and I think we showed tonight that we can play with them,” Oilers captain Connor McDavid said. “That’s a confidence booster for this group, but we know that our best can play with anybody.”
Edmonton outshot Florida 32-18 in the game but could not find a way to beat goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, who collected his third career playoff shutout. Game 2 is here at Amerant Bank Arena on Monday (8 p.m. ET; ABC, ESPN+, SN, TVAS, CBC).
“I didn’t like the result, obviously, but I thought we were able to skate, and the key to our game is skating and forechecking and getting pucks in the O-zone and making plays,” Oilers forward Zach Hyman said. “I thought for lots of parts of that game we were the team that was pushing, we just didn’t come out on top today.”