The Edmonton Oilers have their first win in a Stanley Cup Final since 2006 and they got it in 8-1 blowout fashion over the Florida Panthers in Saturday night’s Game 4. Superstar center Connor McDavid led the Oilers to their first win, staving off elimination for at least one more game after falling in three straight to the Panthers to open the series.
McDavid posted a game-high four points (1g, 3a) including potting his first career Stanley Cup Final goal past a previously impenetrable Sergei Bobrovsky in Florida’s net. The NHL’s marquee talent is playing in his first championship series after nine seasons with the Oilers and five prior playoff disappoints.
The 27-year-old pivot capitalized on a failed pinch attempt by Aaron Ekblad and beat a backchecking Carter Verhaeghe to the puck in the Panthers’ zone. The goal came at the 1:13 mark of the second period and gave the Oilers a 4-1 lead.
The Panthers had kept McDavid from finding the back of the net in the prior three games but the floodgates opened at Rogers Place on Saturday. After scoring his goal, McDavid assisted on three additional Edmonton tallies, helping chase Bobrovsky to Florida’s bench.
McDavid’s four-point outing gives him 38 points (6g, 32a) in Edmonton’s 22 playoff games. His 32 assists are the most in a single postseason in NHL history, eclipsing a record set by Wayne Gretzky (31) during the Oilers’ successful run to the Cup in 1988.
“Obviously, not the focus with where we’re at but it’s not lost on me what [Gretzky] means to the game,” McDavid said postgame. “Like I said though, not the focus.”
He grabbed sole possession of the record on Dylan Holloway’s goal at the 14:11 mark of the third period.
“That’s pretty special,” Connor Brown said postgame. “I mean, Connor probably won’t admit it, but you’ve got to feel proud about that. I’ve known Connor for a long time and it’s not an accident. He is the player he is. He works harder than anyone I’ve ever met. He’s our best player and competes the hardest. Like I said, we’re lucky to have him and it’s fun to watch.”
McDavid is the only player besides Gretzky (2x) to record 30 assists in one playoff run. Per Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli, McDavid has as many assists (32) these playoffs as 15 of the 18 postseason leaders in the salary cap era had total points.
He is just one assist away from tying his own 33-point playoff run in 2022.
| Year | Player | Total points |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Jack Eichel (VGK) | 26 |
| 2022 | Connor McDavid (EDM) | 33 |
| 2021 | Nikita Kucherov (TBL) | 31 |
| 2020 | Nikita Kucherov (TBL) | 34 |
| 2019 | Brad Marchand (BOS) | 23 |
| 2018 | Evgeny Kuznetsov (WSH) | 32 |
| 2017 | Evgeni Malkin (PIT) | 28 |
| 2016 | Logan Couture (SJS) | 30 |
| 2015 | Patrick Kane (CHI) | 23 |
| 2014 | Anze Kopitar (LAK) | 26 |
| 2013 | David Krejci (BOS) | 26 |
| 2012 | Anze Kopitar/Dustin Brown (LAK) | 20 |
| 2011 | David Krejci (BOS) | 23 |
| 2010 | Daniel Briere (PHI) | 30 |
| 2009 | Evgeni Malkin (PIT) | 36 |
| 2008 | Sidney Crosby (PIT) | 27 |
| 2007 | Daniel Alfredsson (OTT) | 22 |
| 2006 | Eric Staal (CAR) | 28 |
Among all active players, McDavid now holds the record for total points in a postseason (38), leaping over Evgeni Malkin (36 points, 2009). Wayne Gretzky holds the all-time record with 47 points (17g, 30a) in 1985 and Mario Lemieux ranks second with 44 points (16g, 28a) in 1991.
McDavid’s 38 points in 2024 are tied with Greztky’s 38 points from 1983 for the fifth-highest total in league history. For McDavid to keep climbing the ranks and shoot for one of the top spots, the Oilers must push the Panthers deeper into this year’s series with wins in consecutive potential elimination games.
The Cup Final will now shift back to Florida’s Amerant Bank Arena for Game 5. The Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy will be in the building again with puck drop set for 8 pm ET on Tuesday night.
