Edmonton Oilers Continue Miracle Run By Reaching Game 7 – Hockey Writers – Edmonton Oilers

There have been very few moments in hockey that you can call a miracle. At the 1980 Winter Olympics, Al Michaels asked hockey fans if they believed in miracles during the final seconds of the United States' victory over the Soviet Union. I saw a few miracles happen throughout the 1980s when Edmonton Oilers legend Wayne Gretzky piled up record after record during his time in the Alberta Capital. I saw a miracle happen in 1990 when freshman Petr Klima came off the ice and hit the Oilers triple overtime winner against Boston Bruins goaltender Andy Moog in Game 1 of the 1990 Stanley Cup Finals. I've been an Oilers fan since 1979-80, and I can honestly say I've never seen anything like the 2023-24 version of the team. Win or lose on Monday in Game 7 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers; I would still consider it a miracle season for a miracle team.

The Oilers Rise from the Dead Multiple Times in the 2023-24 NHL Season

This is a team and fans who believe now. The Oilers had to scratch and claw their way back into contention after a disastrous 2-9-1 start to the 23-24 NHL Season. They shocked a lot of people when they were tied for last place in the NHL standings in early November to earn a playoff spot in early April.

In the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, they had to come from a 3-2 deficit to defeat the Vancouver Canucks in seven games in the second round. The Oilers had to come back from a 2-1 deficit to defeat the Dallas Stars in six games in the Western Conference finals. But they really saved their best for last in this postseason came back from a three-game deficit against the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Finals to tie the series at 3-3 thanks to a 5-1 victory on June 21 in Edmonton. Now, they are within one win of the Stanley Cup. That, folks, is a miracle in itself. Now imagine if they win Game 7.

This Oilers team is going to be OK

Unlike the 2006 version of the Oilers, who gave it everything they had to reach Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Carolina Hurricanes, this version of the Oilers still has gas left in the tank. After a relatively quiet performance on the score sheet in the Oilers' 5-1 Game 6 victory, there is a very good chance that Oilers captain Connor McDavid will erupt in Game 7 in Sunrise, Florida, like a raging bull. This is truly his time. It's the signature play of his Hall of Fame-worthy career, and you can bet he'll rise to the occasion.

Related: Like Messi, Connor McDavid's Time to Win It All Will Come

The Oilers as a team began to believe that they could win this Stanley Cup final in the third period when they lost 4-3 to the Panthers in Game 3. That's when he scored two goals against Sergei Bobrovsky, who was the team's leading scorer. Conn Smythe trophy at that time. That 3rd period comeback for the Oilers gave them hope, belief, and the realization that they could beat Bobrovsky. It reminds me of 1984 when the Oilers finally defeated the great Billy Smith of the New York Islanders in Game 3 on home ice in Edmonton. That was their Matrix-era Neo/Ted Lasso “Believe” in 1984, and I believe the 2024 version of the team had a moment when they solved the Bobrovsky mystery late in Game 3.

In Game 7, anything can happen

It wouldn't seem right for the Oilers to come back and lose Game 7 in Florida on Monday. But it is possible. Bobrovsky could channel his inner Ken Dryden and put up a brick wall, or Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk could put on a show. But I'm not sure. The mental frame of the Panthers at the moment is probably very low, especially after losing the last three Cup Final games in a row. But strange things happened. Meanwhile, the Oilers gave the Panthers a match for their speed and efficiency on the penalty kill. And Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner has played Bobrovsky for the past seven seasons. Can Skinner do it again? I believe so.

The 2023-24 Edmonton Oilers have a chance to inspire a new generation of hockey fans. If the Oilers win on Monday, they will join the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs as the only other team to erase a 3-0 deficit in the Stanley Cup Finals and come back to win it. The Oilers' win might be the greatest comeback in professional sports history — it would have been fitting if it had been McDavid's first Stanley Cup. It would also be a testament to the belief in yourself and your teammates no matter how bleak things looked throughout the season and throughout the play-offs. Florida is known for miracles, like the Brownsville Miracle in the 1990s… on Monday, June 24, there will be another miracle in Florida, this time at Sunrise. It would be a miracle for the Oilers to lift the Stanley Cup or come back from the dead with one last game, the Panthers. Either way, Game 7 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals will be a surprise.