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In the final series of the NHL, it’s not that the Edmonton Oilers didn’t have their moments. It played an excellent road game in Florida to open the series, but didn’t get anything going. It also had its place in triples.
At the same time, it is only and only right that Florida leads the NHL playoff series 3-0. Last year’s final loser is just a win away from the championship.
The walk over opening before our eyes has not been seen in the NHL finals for a while. We have to go back to 1998, when the previous time at the final level the broom was swept, so to speak – at that time Esa Tikkanen represented by Washington lost to Detroit in four straight games.
This year, Edmonton won’t get a single bite from Florida.
Huge level difference
Florida’s performance on Thursday in Edmonton was squat. Only late on Wednesday night due to the stormy weather in Florida, the legs of the American team, who made it to the Canadian side, did not really stay on the plane and their sleep was too short.
Forty minutes was enough for it to wrap up the match and reveal all Edmonton’s weaknesses. There isn’t a single area in the playoff series where Edmonton is better than Florida right now. None.
The most blatant difference can be seen in the performance level of the star players. of Edmonton Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are like boys in men’s games. The same applies Zach Hymania, Evan Bouchard and so on. The combined goal balance of the aforementioned foursome from the finals is zero.
Sure, McDavid scored two hits in the three-point game, but we dare not call it a good performance yet.
At the same time, Florida hits the scoreboard with three chains. This brings us to the next area where Florida crushes Canadians. For example by Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen occupied Florida’s triple chain has won its games in the finals 4–0. The third member of the chain Vladimir Tarasenko hit on thursday.
Edmonton, on the other hand, went into the third game with a three-point streak Matias Janmark–Adam Henrique–Connor Brown. The difference is like night and day.
The Oilers don’t want to get even the second string. It seems somewhat unbelievable that megastar Leon Draisailt has to play even scattered shifts for a 39-year-old Corey Perry’s with in the same chain. The chain rally is endless because there is no equilibrium.
Sure Evander Kane the injury plays a part in the matter, but it alone wouldn’t fix the big picture either.
Florida dominated the starting circle
Florida’s hair-raising is a non-stop drumming, which Edmonton’s defense, which is basically wrestling in a different weight class, couldn’t stand it again. It seems a bit unreasonable to raise Darnell Nurse and Cody Ceci came out again, but two rough mistakes and the board was hit 1–2 and 1–3.
Florida’s 2–1 win was once again a fantastic demonstration of Luostarinen’s insatiable hunger for scrimmage and exploitation. Cheers!
Florida’s underpowered game is one of the main themes of the match series, as the Oilers live on their superior game. Coming into Thursday, the Panthers had killed 27 of the previous 26 freezes and now continued on the same note: three freezes, three freeze kills.
The world’s most dangerous possession game has completely suffocated in Florida’s handling. Bouchard doesn’t celebrate from the blue line and Draisaitl doesn’t shoot goals from the right point.
Florida is simply too good in every area for Edmonton. Before the three-way match, for example, everyone who started at least ten times in Florida had won at least 50 percent of their starts. Barkov 54, Anton Lundell 54, Evan Rodrigues 56 and so on.
On the other side, Connor McDavid’s starting percentage was 33.3 and Draisaitl’s 48 – and the under-fifty oil duo also remained in the latest battle.
A huge difference between a goal loss and a win
When talking about the absolute top level of the NHL, the games are even in many places. Of course, Edmonton can screw with Florida, but a goal won and a goal lost is a bigger difference than it feels or sounds like. I don’t think Edmonton will recover mentally from Thursday’s mangle.
In everything, Florida is sharper, faster, better quality and clearly more confident than Napsu. Florida knows exactly what it’s looking for in the playoffs and how it’s going to get what it wants. Edmonton has its good moments, but in the big picture, down to its star players, it’s like Alice in Wonderland.
The goal difference of 11–4 in the final series shows the essentials.
Only four goals conceded in three games is an unfathomable testament to the quality of Florida’s back five and defense. You don’t want to have space and time anywhere, and if there is, the goalkeeper Sergei Bobrovsky take care of the rest.
The previous, equally low number of goals scored can be found in 1996. At that time, Florida scored four hits in four games against Colorado in the finals.
Still, there’s no need to bash the Oilers any more. This team was never a championship-level combination. All honor and attention goes to the Florida team, leading players, coaches and club management. This panther machine is tuned for such a blow that no one in the Western Conference would have found an opponent for Florida.
Now it’s all about whether the pack of cats can hold out or whether the championship party will move to flooded South Florida.
Edmonton can’t be saved by anything and it’s kind of a shame for the series. If Florida celebrates already on Saturday, the series will be remembered as one of the loudest in a long time.