Oilers' Stanley Cup Final turnaround vs. Panthers goes beyond Connor McDavid
Once the Edmonton Oilers fell behind 3-0 in the Stanley Cup Final, they pointed out that they had shown the ability during the regular season to string together a series of wins.
They turned it around from a 3-9-1 start this season with a coaching change, improved play and winning streaks of eight games and 16 games to make the playoffs.
They've shown that ability since Game 3's loss, winning the past two games 8-1 and 5-3 to force a Game 6. The Florida Panthers need just one victory in the next two games to clinch their first NHL championship, but the Oilers are in position to tie the series if they win Friday's home game.
"We're playing on house money," coach Kris Knoblauch told reporters on Wednesday. "Nobody's expected us to be here right now. Nobody gave us an opportunity to maybe even be in the Stanley Cup Final, let alone give us an opportunity to claw our way back in this series. We're just having fun. There's always been a lot of belief in this room."
What has brought about a change in the course of the Stanley Cup Final?
Connor McDavid is on fire
He already broke Wayne Gretzky's record for assists in a postseason and he set another Stanley Cup Final record by totaling eight points in the last two games. With 42 points, he's five points behind Gretzky's record for points in a single postseason.
McDavid has always had the ability to make slick moves at speed, but he raised his level in Game 5. He scored from a sharp angle and later weaved his way through traffic to set up Corey Perry's goal.
Oilers were playing well previously, now are getting results
They carried play in Game 1 only to be thwarted by Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. They were done in by mistakes in Game 3 and nearly fought back. They put it all together in the past two games, solving Bobrovsky and taking advantage of the Panthers' mistakes. Stymied early in the series by the Panthers' forecheck, they've helped counteract that with quick up-ice passes.
Stuart Skinner gets better later in series
According to Sportsnet, the Oilers goalie is 9-0 in Games 4-7 in this year's playoffs with a 1.56 goals-against average and .938 save percentage. He had a big save in Game 4 against Carter Verhaeghe and in Game 5 against Aaron Ekblad with the game tight.
Oilers' special teams are clicking
Neither team was able to get much going on the power play early in this series. The Oilers have continued to stymie the Panthers' power play and scored twice short-handed in the past two games. Its power play finally connected on a 5-on-3 advantage in Game 4 and scored twice in Game 5. Evan Bouchard set up one goal with a blast from the point that deflected off Zach Hyman.
Oilers' depth players scoring
The Oilers have put out their third line to start the last two games and it has connected in the first period. Mattias Janmark, Adam Henrique and Connor Brown each has a goal. Brown's health is key. He took a while to recover from last season's knee surgery and his speed is noticeable.