6/12/2025
SUNRISE, FLA
Leon Draisaitl scored at 11:18 of overtime, his second overtime goal of the Stanley Cup Final, lifting the Edmonton Oilers to a 5-4 victory in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers, tying the best of seven series at 2-2.
Edmonton rallied from a 3-0 deficit after the first intermission to pull off the comeback win.
Sam Reinhart tied the game for the Panthers with 20 seconds left, the second latest tying goal in Stanley Cup Final history.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Darnell Nurse, Vasily Podkolzin, Jake Walman, and Leon Draisaitl scored the goals for the Oilers. Matthew Tkachuk scored a pair, Anton Lundell, and Sam Reinhart also scored for Florida.
The Oilers head back home with the series deadlocked at two games apiece Saturday night.
The Panthers trounced the Oilers in Game 3, outscoring Edmonton 6-1. Game 4 had the makings of the turning point of the series for the victor. Kris Knoblauch before the game announced Stuart Skinner would start in goal for the Oilers after allowing five goals in the loss in game 3. Skinner coming into the night had a 6-0 record in Game 4’s with a 1.26 GAA and .955 save percentage.
Penalties hurt the Oilers in Game 3, and the adversity mounted for Edmonton when Florida went on a five on three power play. Four seconds after the two man advantage commenced Matthew Tkachuk scored at 11:40 to put the Panthers on the board. Tkachuk had not scored since the conference final, but it was only a matter of time for an encore. Tkachuk stashed a rebound off a Sam Reinhart shot at 16:56 for his second goal of the game to extend the lead to 2-0. Carter Verhaeghe continued the barrage late in the opening period when he set up Anton Lundell for Florida’s third goal with 42 seconds left in the period. Florida outshot Edmonton 17-7, with a 3-0 lead at the end of the first period.
In the second period through three games, Florida had outscored Edmonton 5-2. If the Oilers hoped to stay in the game, a strong period was paramount. Edmonton started the middle frame with Calvin Pickard replacing Stuart Skinner in net. Edmonton’s power play saw their first chance early in the middle frame. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins went top shelf on Sergei Bobrovsky to put the Oilers on the board at 3:33. It was the spark the Oil needed. Darnell Nurse scored at 12:47, going top shelf blocker side on Bobrovsky. A three goal lead had diminished down to one. Vasily Podkolzin swiped a backhander by Bobrovsky to tie the game for Edmonton at 15:05. In a period that began with the Panthers nursing a healthy three goal lead, Edmonton leveled terms incredibly.
After a roller coaster in the first two periods, incredibly the climax had yet to unfold. At 13:36, Jake Walman scored to give the Oilers their first lead of the game. Walman proves his value after being acquired at the trade deadline from the San Jose Sharks.
Late in the game, Florida pulled Bobrovsky for the extra attacker. Sam Reinhart buried a loose puck on a net mouth scramble to tie the game with 20 seconds left. Reinhart’s marker was the second latest game tying goal in Stanley Cup Final history only to Corey Perry’s late goal in Game 2 of this year’s final. Overtime was necessary to decide a third game.
In overtime, Edmonton’s Calvin Pickard notably made a pad stop on Sam Bennett that rang off the crossbar. On the other end, Leon Draisaitl drifted a backhand shot through the legs of defenseman Niko Mikkola and Bobrovsky for the OT GWG. The goal at 11:18 evened the series at two games apiece heading back to Edmonton.
Calvin Pickard in relief made 22 saves, earning the victory for the Oilers. The comeback marks the first time in Stanley Cup Final history a team leading by three goals after one period lost the game. For Draisaitl, the goal marks his fourth overtime winner of the postseason, a playoff record. Draisaitl began the playoffs with not a single overtime winning goal in the playoffs. More importantly the win displays the character the Oilers have developed. Draisaitl said postgame, “I think that once again it shows you that our group never quits, I think we believe that no matter how bad it is, if we get over that hump of adversity we’re going to keep pushing, we’re going to keep coming, and eventually it’ll break.”
For Florida, the mindset shifts according to Matthew Tkachuk, “It’s the best of three, with losing this one tonight, we’ve got to go in there and win one eventually. So hopefully you can do it in Game 5.”
Game 5 of the series is set for Saturday night at 5 p.m. in Edmonton with the game broadcasted on TNT.
Stay tuned to ESN for continuing coverage of the Stanley Cup Final.
www.elisportsnetwork.com
