Edmonton, Alberta – Leon Draisaitl scored on a power play in overtime, Stuart Skinner made 29 saves and the Edmonton Oilers erased a multigoal deficit to beat the defending champion Florida Panthers 4-3 in Game 1 of their Stanley Cup Final rematch on Wednesday night.
After Tomas Nosek’s penalty for putting the puck over the glass, Draisaitl’s goal 19:29 into OT sent the home fans into a frenzy and made sure the Oilers would not start this series the way they did a year ago, when they fell behind three games to none.
“He’s invaluable,” said Oilers captain Connor McDavid, who set up the tying and winning goals. “He does so many good things: clutch, faceoffs. You name it, he does it.”
For a while, it appeared the Oilers would lose Game 1 this year as well. Draisaitl’s goal 66 seconds in was followed later in the first period by Sam Bennett deflecting a shot past Skinner after falling into him.
Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch unsuccessfully challenged for goaltender interference, with the NHL’s situation room ruling that his own player, Jake Walman, tripped Bennett into Skinner. The resulting penalty paved the way for Florida’s Brad Marchand to score the go-ahead goal on a power play.
Bennett scored his second of the night early in the second period to put the Panthers up 3-1. They entered 31-0 over the past three playoffs since coach Paul Maurice took over when leading at the first or second intermission.
“I mean, they pushed,” Marchand said. “They obviously are a very good team, and doesn’t take much for them to score. So, not surprising, the push they did. They’re a great team. We’ve just got to keep going.”
Fourth-liner Viktor Arvidsson brought the crowd back to life early in the second, and fellow Swede Mattias Ekholm – playing in just his second game back from an extended injury absence – tied it with 13:27 remaining in regulation off a perfect pass from McDavid.
At the other end, Skinner made a handful of saves that were vital to keeping the Panthers from extending their lead or going back ahead late in the third. Florida counterpart Sergei Bobrovsky did the same, in between derisive chants of “Ser-gei! Ser-gei!” that followed goals he allowed.
Skinner was greeted with friendlier chants of “Stuuuu” after saves, including one in the first minute of overtime on a quality scoring chance.
“He was great again,” McDavid said. “He gave us a chance.”
Bobrovsky stone-cold robbed Trent Frederic nine minutes into OT but eventually cracked on Draisaitl’s third overtime goal of these playoffs, tying a postseason record.
“It’s a special feeling,” Draisaitl said. “It’s great for right now but we’ve got to look ahead and get ready for Game 2.”
Game 2 is Friday night in Edmonton before the series shifts to Florida for Games 3 and 4.
Pens hire Muse to replace Sullivan
Pittsburgh – The Pittsburgh Penguins are trying to navigate their way through the twilight of the Sidney Crosby era to the dawn of whatever comes next.
It’s a transition general manager Kyle Dubas has repeatedly said will not be easy, or particularly quick, and would require a coach who can connect with veterans while simultaneously developing young talent.
Enter Dan Muse, who has spent the last two decades dabbling in the former and excelling in the latter.
Dubas hired the 42-year-old Muse as Pittsburgh’s coach on Wednesday, tasking the former New York Rangers assistant with helping the Penguins find their way back to relevance after three straight springs spent with their noses pressed to the glass while the Stanley Cup playoffs went on with them.
Muse replaces Mike Sullivan, who split with Pittsburgh in April after a nearly decade-long tenure that included back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017. The Rangers scooped up Sullivan in early May.
Sullivan’s departure was amicable. He even took out a billboard in Pittsburgh last week thanking the city. In New York, Sullivan will find a more experienced roster ready to win now.
That won’t be the case for Muse in Pittsburgh. The seventh of the eight coaching vacancies filled this offseason – Muse’s hiring leaves the Boston Bruins as the only club still searching – is walking into a job that will require patience, prodding and maybe a bit of politicking to thrive.
Dubas said the team met with “many candidates” before deciding on Muse, who has spent the last half-decade as an assistant at the NHL level. Muse also has a track record as a cultivator of talent and served as the head coach of USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program from 2020-23.
“What separated Dan was his ability to develop players, win at all levels where he has been a head coach and his consistent success coaching special teams in the NHL,” Dubas said. “From his success in developing college and junior players, to his impactful work with veteran players during his time in the NHL, Dan has shown a proven ability to connect with players at all stages of their careers and help them to reach their potential.”
Muse has been part of coaching staffs that have won titles at multiple levels. He was an assistant at Yale when the Bulldogs claimed the NCAA championship in 2013. He served as the head coach for the Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League – the top junior league in the U.S. – when the Steel captured the Clark Cup in 2017 and helped the U.S. under-18 and under-20 teams win world titles.
When Muse reached the NHL in 2017 with Nashville, he oversaw a penalty-kill unit that was among the league’s best. He produced similar results when he took over a similar role with the Rangers in 2023.
“His overall body of work, attention to detail and vision for our group showed us that he is the best coach to take our team forward,” Dubas said.
The list of players Muse has worked with during his time at USA Hockey includes forward Rutger McGroarty, a 21-year-old now considered the top prospect in the Penguins’ system.
Muse’s job will be to find a way to mesh McGroarty and the rest of what likely will be a substantial youth movement with a team that for now remains defined by franchise icons Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang.
Crosby signed an extension last fall that could keep him in Pittsburgh for two more seasons. Letang is signed through 2028. Malkin, who turns 39 in August, is about to enter the final season of his contract, with retirement perhaps not far behind.
Dubas has long known this day was coming and has spent a significant chunk of the last 16 months stockpiling draft picks. The Penguins have 30 selections over the next three drafts, including 18 over the first three rounds, though Dubas is likely to turn some of those selections into packages designed to acquire NHL-ready players.
While Pittsburgh should have a little more room under the salary cap to fill out the roster, Dubas is focused on trying to build something sustainable for the long haul rather than a quick fix.
Muse will inherit a team that has serious questions in net, where Tristan Jarry and Alex Nedeljkovic struggled last season, and is in urgent need of depth scoring to complement Crosby and linemates Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell.
The last time the Penguins hired a coach without NHL head coaching experience, Mike Johnston was fired just over two months into his second season. He was replaced by Sullivan, whose fiery persona – along with significant help from heady moves made by then-general manager Jim Rutherford – made Pittsburgh the first team in nearly 20 years to win consecutive Cups.
Sullivan’s mandate was clear: Wake the Penguins up. Muse’s is, too: Help the franchise successfully navigate the bridge from one generation to the next.
Oilers’ Hyman sports brace on right arm
Edmonton, Alberta – Zach Hyman (University of Michigan) said Wednesday his right wrist got dislocated late last round, an injury that is sidelining one of the Edmonton Oilers’ most valuable forwards for the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers.
Hyman sported a brace on his right arm after undergoing surgery last week to repair the damage caused by a hit from Dallas’ Mason Marchment in Game 4 of the Western Conference final.
“I knew it wasn’t good when I got hit,” Hyman said. “Right away, I just felt my wrist kind of go on me. … Quickly realized when I saw the doctors it’s something that needed surgery and something that I wasn’t going to be able to play through.”
Hyman memorably said after the Oilers’ Game 7 loss to Florida last year that he believed they would be back in the final. In a cruel twist of fate, his teammates are, but the 33-year-old winger is not able to play in the series.
Win it for Hyman has quickly becoming a rallying cry for Edmonton.
“Missing him is big; he’s a huge piece of this team,” veteran Adam Henrique said.” His physicality, net-front presence, in the locker room – all those sorts of things. Just a great person, so we’re certainly going to miss him on the ice but he’ll be there and we’ll certainly fight for him.”
Oilers players video-called Hyman after beating the Stars without him in Game 5 of the West final to move on to compete for the Stanley Cup again. He said that meant the world to him.
“It caught me off guard,” Hyman said. “I was crying. It was really emotional. You just feel so much a part of the team and for them to do that in that moment meant a lot.”
Hyman is expected to be around the team throughout the final, flying to Florida and providing whatever insight and moral support he can without lacing up his skates. He called it “acting like I’m playing but obviously not.”
“Some things in life you can’t control,” Hyman said, “and this is one of them.”
Greer out
The Panthers are mostly healthy, but they ruled out A.J. Greer for Game 1 of the Cup final with an undisclosed injury. Jesper Boqvist takes his place in the lineup.
“It’s important that, fortunately for us, it’s not his first time in the playoffs, so he hasn’t been sitting for a long time and he’s had some pretty good success when he’s come in,” coach Paul Maurice said of Greer. “And he fits. He’s spent time with all of those players. There’s nothing new for him, so he can come in and just play.”
Brown back
Edmonton is getting a key player back with Connor Brown expected to be back after missing two games because of injury. Coach Kris Knoblauch called the strong two-way winger a game-time decision, while Brown declared himself good to go and all signs pointed to nothing standing in the way of a return.
“He’s been playing great all playoffs,” linemate Trent Frederic said. “He brings a lot of energy, brings a lot of swagger, a lot of jam, so we’re excited to get him back.”
Jeff Skinner, who played more than 1,000 regular-season NHL games in his career before making his Stanley Cup Playoff debut in the series opener in the first round and then got scratched until replacing Hyman against Dallas, appears to be out to make room for Brown.
Bettman: Contract talks ‘in really good shape’
Edmonton, Alberta – Negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement are progressing well, though there is no timeline on reaching a deal, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh said Wednesday.
Bettman, at his annual state of the league address prior to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, said the sides are “having very constructive, professional, cordial dialogue.” Talks did not begin until April, and there is still quite some time until the current CBA expires in September 2026.
“I don’t have an announcement to make today that we have a deal, but we have more than a year to go and I think we’re in really good shape, having really good discussions,” Bettman said. “That’s a testament to Marty Walsh and Ron Hainsey and people at the Players’ Association who have been working tirelessly with us.”
Walsh said the league and union were having good ongoing conversations, adding there are not major issues on the table to quibble over.
“It’s moving steady, it’s moving forward and I feel good with where we are and we’ll see what happens,” Walsh said. “It gets complicated at certain times, any collective bargaining agreement, but it’s not where it was in the past here where you’re seeing national disputes between organized labor and companies.”
Hainsey, the NHLPA’s assistant executive director, expects the constant meetings to continue during the final in Edmonton and South Florida.
“We’re all in the same place at the same time,” Hainsey said. “There are multiple days in between these games where we can find something for ourselves to do.”
No Russians in Olympics
Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said the league does not expect Russian players to participate in the Olympics next year. That would be status quo for the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation, which has banned Russian teams since that country’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.
Walsh said players he has spoken to are disappointed not to be able to participate in Milan, the first Olympics with NHL participation since 2014.
“It’s out of their control, and there’s not much they can do,” Walsh said. “There’s not much they can do with what’s happening in Ukraine and Russia, and they want to play best on best. We hear it all the time. They want to play best on best and we were hoping that by this point in time, the conflict or the war would not be where it is.”
Expansion?
Daly said the league is not engaging in a formal expansion process to go beyond 32 teams, but officials are listening to potential ownership groups about any proposals.
“If somebody wants to essentially apply for an expansion franchise and has all the requisite elements that we would look for in an expansion franchise, we would raise it with the Board of Governors and see if they have any interest in it,” Daly said. “There are some people we’ve talked to more than others, but there’s a lot of interest, which I think we’re gratified with.”
Avs sign Nelson to 3-year contract
Denver – The Colorado Avalanche shored up their depth at center Wednesday by bringing back Brock Nelson on a three-year deal.
It is worth $22.5 million, a person with knowledge of the contract told The Associated Press. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because financial terms were not announced.
The extension keeps Nelson, 33, with the Avalanche through the 2027-28 NHL season at an annual salary cap hit of $7.5 million. Colorado picked up Nelson in a trade with the New York Islanders on March 6.
Nelson played in 19 games with Colorado to finish up the regular season with six goals and seven assists, and had four assists in the team’s first-round playoff exit against Dallas.
“He’s been a great center in this league for a long time, and he brings professionalism and a dedicated work ethic on and off the ice,” Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland said in a statement. “We think he’s a great fit and is a stabilizing presence to our second-line center role with his size and ability to touch all areas of the ice. We’re excited to see what his contributions will be over a larger sample size with the Avalanche.”
Nelson has 587 career points (301 goals, 286 assists) spanning 920 regular-season games since being selected by the Islanders in the first round of the 2010 NHL draft. He played at North Dakota before joining the Islanders.
Nathan MacKinnon is Colorado’s top-line center and turned in a regular season in which he finished second in the league with 116 points. Nelson occupies the second-line center spot and Charlie Coyle anchors the third line.
Nelson has proven durable, playing in 246 straight regular-season games.
“Having spent my entire career with one organization, we weren’t totally sure what to expect when we arrived in Denver,” said Nelson, who was acquired as part of a deal that sent Calum Ritchie, Oliver Kylington, a first-round pick in the 2026 or 2027 NHL draft and a conditional third-round pick in 2028 to the Islanders. “But getting the opportunity to play for the Avalanche, to compete with a great group of teammates in that locker room, and in front of the tremendous fans at Ball Arena, we knew this was where we wanted to stay.”
Nelson’s salary topping $7 million could help set the bar for other pending free agent forwards like Toronto’s John Tavares and Dallas’ Matt Duchene.
Kucherov wins Ted Lindsay Award
Toronto – Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning won the Ted Lindsay award as the NHL’s most outstanding player as chosen by his peers.
The NHL Players’ Association announced the honor Wednesday. Kucherov and Colorado teammates Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar were the finalists for the trophy as voted on by members of the NHLPA.
Kucherov was the league’s leading scorer with 121 points on 37 goals and 84 assists. He is also a finalist for the Hart Trophy as the most valuable player along with Edmonton forward Leon Draisaitl and Winnipeg goaltender Connor Hellebuyck.
The 31-year-old Russian winger is a back-to-back Art Ross Trophy winner after also leading the NHL in points last season. He took home the Hart in 2019 and helped Tampa Bay win the Stanley Cup in 2020 and ’21.
Since Kucherov became a full-time player in the league in 2014-15, only Oilers captain Connor McDavid has more regular-season points, 1,082 to 976.
Stanley Cup Finals
(Edmonton leads 1-0)
Game 1: Edmonton 4-3 (OT)
Game 2: Friday at Edmonton, 8
Game 3: Monday at Florida, 8
Game 4: Thursday, June 12 at Florida, 8
x-Game 5: Saturday, June 14 at Edmonton, 8
x-Game 6: Tuesday, June 17 at Florida, 8
x-Game 7: Friday, June 20 at Edmonton, 8
x-If necessary
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