* The Panthers will have their third straight chance at clinching the franchise’s first Stanley Cup when they return to Rogers Place – six of the past eight champions have clinched the Cup on the road.
* The Oilers can even the series with a win Friday – something they haven’t done yet in the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. Only three other teams in NHL history have forced a Game 6 after trailing 3-0 in the championship series.
* With the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft just over one week away, #NHLStats released an in-depth list of prospects with family ties to NHL players.
PANTHERS STILL ON THE PRECIPICE OF FIRST STANLEY CUP
After nearly battling back from a three-goal deficit in Game 5, the Panthers take their third crack at clinching the Stanley Cup when they head to Rogers Place in Edmonton – a venue in which they have suffered only one regulation defeat in nine all-time visits (4-0-3 in regular season, 1-1 in playoffs). Six of the past eight champions have clinched the Cup on the road.
* Seven of the 14 series-clinching wins in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs to date have been won by the road team, including Florida’s Game 6 victory in the Second Round at Boston. A Panthers victory would also mark the third straight postseason (9 in 2023 & 8 in 2022) more than half of the series were clinched on the road – a stretch last seen in 2010 (11), 2009 (10) and 2008 (8).
* Florida is the first team since 2012, and ninth in NHL history, to have at least three attempts at clinching the Cup. Seven of the previous eight won the championship, including four in the NHL’s expansion era (since 1967-68; outlined below).
The Kings are the only team to play three or more potential Cup-clinching games in one Final without needing a winner-take-all Game 7. After pulling ahead 3-0 for a fourth consecutive series, the Kings lost Games 4 and 5 to Adam Henrique and the Devils (by a combined score of 5-2) but returned home for Game 6 where they took a 4-0 lead on the back of a 1-2—3 outing from captain Dustin Brown. Of the eight previous instances of a team having three chances to clinch the Cup, Los Angeles is the sole team to emerge without the need for a winner-take-all game.
The Hurricanes needed three potential Cup-clinching games before hoisting the franchise’s first Stanley Cup – a series that also featured the last time the Oilers competed in the Final. Edmonton, down 3-1, fought back to force a Game 7 thanks to an overtime goal from Fernando Pisani in Game 5 and Jussi Markkanen’s 16-save performance in Game 6 – the second goaltender in franchise history to post a shutout in the Final. Ultimately, Carolina triumphed on home ice in Game 7 after a 32-year-old Frantisek Kaberle became the oldest defenseman in NHL history to score a Stanley Cup-clinching goal.
The Rangers took a commanding 3-1 series lead before needing three more contests to snap what was then the longest Stanley Cup championship drought in NHL history (54 years). Geoff Courtnall potted multiple goals in Game 5 and Game 6 to help the Canucks draw even, before Rangers captain Mark Messier helped his club clinch the Stanley Cup in Game 7 with his team-leading 12th goal of the postseason.
This was the first series to involve the Oilers to require three potential series clinching games. Edmonton jumped out to a commanding 3-1 series lead before Philadelphia strung together two consecutive multi-goal comeback wins on the brink of elimination. Jari Kurri’s postseason-leading 15th goal proved to be winner in Game 7 and helped Edmonton clinch its third Stanley Cup in four years.
OILERS LOOK TO CONTINUE RARE COMEBACK STORY
The Oilers take their first shot at drawing even in the Stanley Cup Final since trailing 1-0 leading into Game 2 when the series shifts back to Rogers Place on Friday. Edmonton became just the fourth team in NHL history to force Game 6 after trailing 3-0 in the Stanley Cup Final – and second in the past 78 years following the aforementioned 2012 Devils – and now has its sights set on becoming the third team to force a Game 7 in that scenario.
After Maple Leafs goaltender Frank McCool posted three straight shutouts to begin the 1945 Stanley Cup Final – a record that still stands today as the most consecutive shutouts in a championship series – Red Wings netminder Harry Lumley blanked Toronto for the second straight contest and Eddie Bruneteau scored 14:16 into overtime as Detroit captured its first-ever overtime win in a Stanley Cup Final and forced Game 7 before ultimately falling to the Maple Leafs in the winner-take-all contest.
Don Metz potted a five-point performance in Game 5, then scored the winning goal a game later as Turk Broda posted his second of four career shutouts in the Stanley Cup Final and helped Toronto force a seventh-and-deciding contest. The Maple Leafs went on to hoist the Stanley Cup in Game 7 and became the first team in NHL history to win a series after trailing 3-0.
FAMILIAR NAMES AMONG PROSPECTS FOR 2024 NHL DRAFT
The 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft, set to become the first sports event and first live television broadcast from Sphere in Las Vegas, is just over a week away with Round 1 slated for Friday, June 28 (7 p.m. ET on ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS) and Rounds 2-7 on Saturday, June 29 (11:30 a.m. ET on ESPN+, NHLN, SN, SN1).
* Many ranked prospects eligible for this year’s Draft have fathers who will be familiar to NHL fans, including a Hockey Hall of Fame member, NHL Awards winners and Stanley Cup champions. CLICK HERE for an in-depth list of prospects with family ties to NHL players.
* Tig Iginla of the Kelowna Rockets is the No. 9-ranked North American Skater after a breakout 2023-24 campaign that saw him finish sixth in the WHL with 47 goals and tie a franchise record for goals in a single playoff series (8). His father is Hockey Hall of Fame member Jarome Iginla, who was selected 11th overall by the Stars in 1995 before a 20-year NHL career (625-675— 1,300 in 1,554 GP) that saw him win the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy (twice), Art Ross Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award. They could join a rare group of father-son duos who were both selected among the top 15 in the NHL Draft.
* Other notable father-son duos among this year’s prospects include Aatos Koivu (No. 27-ranked ITL skater), son of longtime Canadiens captain and two-time NHL Awards winner Saku Koivu as well as four players with a father who is a Stanley Cup champion: Max Plante (No. 43-ranked N.A. skater), son of Derek Plante (1999 w/ DAL), Lukas Fischer (No. 45-ranked N.A. skater), son of Jiri Fischer (2002 w/ DET), Miroslav Satan (No. 51-ranked ITL skater), son of Miroslav Satan (2009 w/ PIT) and Noah Lapointe (No. 198-ranked N.A. skater), son of Martin Lapointe (1997 & 1998 w/ DET).
QUICK CLICKS
* #NHLStats: Live Updates – June 19
* NHL.com goes behind-the-scenes of ‘NHL in ASL’ broadcast
* Devils acquire goaltender Jacob Markstrom in trade with Flames
* NHL EDGE stats: Markstrom’s outlook after trade to Devils
* Oilers great Grant Fuhr says Edmonton “riding the wave” into Game 6
* Coach Paul Maurice finds positives for Panthers heading into Game 6
