— who got a taste of the final just a year ago — only a handful of Oilers players have ever experienced Game 1 of a championship series: The energy. The pressure. The intensity.
It showed, and in Edmonton's first Cup final game since 2006, the Oilers had plenty of opportunities but could not finish, falling 3-0 to the swarming and stifling Panthers in Game 1., a generational talent who has faced pressure since the moment he entered the league nine years ago, the game started business as usual.Even McDavid, who leads all scorers in the postseason with 31 points, couldn't cut through the Florida defense despite no shortage of chances.
The Panthers showed why they made it to the final a year ago — and it was clear that the bittersweet memory of losing to the In all, Edmonton sent 32 shots at the 35-year-old Bobrovsky. He stopped all of them. Even in the rare moments when the Oilers got him out of position, the two-time Vezina trophy winner made big save after big save, which was a clear source of frustration for the Western conference winners.
But their power play that had been so effective throughout the postseason was fruitless. Edmonton, which entered the game converting at a postseason-leading 37.3% was 0 for 3 on the man advantage Saturday night.